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The flamboyant British designer John Galliano has been suspended from Dior following his arrest in Paris last night. His arrest comes just days before the unveiling of his new collection at Paris Fashion Week.

de Luxe is hearing two very different stories about the incident.

One source has reported “witnesses said (Galliano) swore heavily, using anti-Jewish insults, before attacking a couple. Both have provided witness statements, as have a number of other people at the bar, including staff.”

However, Vogue UK reports that another onlooker said it was a completely different situation. “We had a table at La Perle and John Galliano sat next to us. He spoke to a couple at a nearby table to say ‘Cheers’ and they insulted him. An argument started and the police came, so Galliano’s bodyguard suggested that they should go to the police station to sort it out. He wasn’t ‘busted’ aggressively by police; it was very quiet and peaceful. I definitely didn’t hear him say anything anti-Semitic, or against any religion; it was all very calm.”

Galliano, who has been Dior’s acclaimed creative director for 14 years, has been suspended from all duties during a police inquiry into the altercation in a bar in the Marais district of Paris. Galliano, 50, who took the creative reins of Dior in 1996, has been based in Paris for 20 years. He is a regular face in the Marais where he’s often seen cruising the streets in his classic yellow taxi.

So is this the case of an outburst prompted by stress before fashion week? After all, Galliano must put himself under intense pressure each year to top his traditionally eccentric and lavishly decorated shows. An investigation is underway. We will be watching this one with great interest…