'Love Island' star Anna Vakili says she was arrested in Iran over tight jeans

Love Island contestant Anna Vakili has claimed she was arrested in Iran for wearing tight-fitting jeans.

The 31-year-old reality TV star, whose parents are Iranian, appeared on broadcaster Johnny Seifert's Secure the Insecure podcast this week and recalled the scary incident.

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Vakili said she was approached by officers while out with her aunt and they told her that her outfit was "non-Islamic".

"It was really scary because I just remember all these police women grabbing me and trying to put me in the van," said the model and influencer.

She added: "They were saying in Farsi 'your jeans are too tight and it's not Islamic', and they were trying to push me into the car.

"My auntie was grabbing me and pulling me away and saying: 'She's English, she's from England, she doesn't know'.

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"I pretended that I couldn't speak Farsi and they let me go because I was from England and I didn't know the laws enough."

Vakili discussed her pride in her Iranian heritage on the podcast, but said she felt she didn't fit in with English girls at school or with Iranian people when she visited the country as a youngster.

She said: "There was always that 'which one am I?'. Now I can say that I'm Persian, but British Persian. I'm both.

"I do love my roots. I like being different and I love the Iranian culture."

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Vakili appeared on the fifth series of Love Island in 2019 and left the villa as a singleton after several explosive rows with partner Jordan Hames.

During her time on the show, she formed a close friendship with Amber Gill, who eventually went on to win the show alongside Greg O'Shea — beating clear favourites Tommy Fury and Molly-Mae Hague.

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