Nigella Lawson's husband has accepted a police caution for grabbing her by the throat.
Art dealer Charles Saatchi was pictured holding his wife by the neck as they argued while eating dinner at London restaurant Scott's on June 9, raising concerns about his behaviour.
After the police said they were looking into the incident, a spokesperson said Charles had "voluntarily attended a central London police station and accepted a caution for assault" yesterday (18.06.13) afternoon. Police are believed to have quizzed the 70-year-old tycoon for hours.
Earlier in the day Charles had insisted their argument was a "playful tiff".
He said: "About a week ago, we were sitting outside a restaurant having an intense debate about the children, and I held Nigella's neck repeatedly while attempting to emphasise my point.
"There was no grip, it was a playful tiff. The pictures are horrific but give a far more drastic and violent impression of what took place. Nigella's tears were because we both hate arguing, not because she had been hurt.
"We had made up by the time we were home."
Charles - who lives with Nigella, her daughter Cosima and son Bruno from her first marriage and his daughter, Phoebe - also explained why his wife left home with a suitcase, saying: "The paparazzi were congregated outside our house after the story broke yesterday morning, so I told Nigella to take the kids off till the dust settled."
Nigella made no allegations against her husband in relation to the incident and reportedly returned to Scott's with him on Saturday (15.06.13) - the day before the photographs of him grabbing her neck were made public - where they dined peacefully.
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