Controversial British photographer David Hamilton dies

Paris : French investigators probing the death of controversial British photographer David Hamilton believe he may have killed himself, an inquiry source said Saturday, just weeks after being accused of rape.

The 83-year-old, known for his widely published nude images of underage girls, was found dead in his Paris home on Friday with a plastic bag on his head, another source close to the probe said.

Hamilton, who rose to fame in the 1970s and whose photography books have sold millions of copies, this week threatened to sue several former child models who had accused him of rape, saying he had previously been cleared of abuse. 

Drug tests will be performed on the body as medication was found in the photographer's bathroom, a source said. Hamilton had also been drinking alcohol.

"There is nothing at this stage to suggest anything other than suicide. He was found dead in his home with a bag on his head," another source close to the inquiry told AFP.

The artist, whose work has long raised questions about where art ends and pornography begins, was at the centre of a torrent of allegations after a French radio presenter accused him of raping her when she was 13.

Flavie Flament, who modelled for Hamilton almost 30 years ago, published an autobiographical novel last month in which she described being raped by a famous photographer during a shoot.

Although she did not name Hamilton in "The Consolation", she used his photograph of her as the book's cover.

Flament, 42, later told French media that it was Hamilton who had raped her after three other women contacted her with near identical allegations.

Flament said Hamilton raped her in the shower of his apartment after spotting her in a nudist resort at Cap d'Agde in southwest France where she was on holiday with her parents.

Hamilton confirmed Flament had been his model, but denied the allegations, telling AFP on Tuesday: "I have done nothing improper."

"Clearly the instigator of this media lynching is looking for her 15 minutes of fame by defaming me in her novel," he said, adding that he would take legal action.

Flament's editor Karina Hocine told AFP Friday the radio presenter was "devastated" by the news of Hamilton's death.

"Naturally, we feel horrified and, at the same time, really disgusted that there was not enough time for justice to run its course," she added.

"The horror of this news will never erase the sleepless nights," Flament told AFP, reiterating her allegations.