Miss Lebanon Emigrant Australia pageant winner Najah Ghamrawi’s journey from catwalk to cop shop

THIS Sydney beauty queen was recently strutting along overseas catwalks. Now she could be stripped of her title after drugs were allegedly found in her car.

IT’S a stunning fall from grace for a glamorous beauty queen who had the world at her feet.

Since representing Australia at this year’s Miss Emigrants beauty contest in Lebanon, Najah Ghamrawi has been used to international holidays, lazy days by the pool in luxury hotels and professional photo shoots.

But the 18-year-old has swapped the cat walk for the cop shop and could now be stripped of her title after police charged her with driving offences in a bust that also allegedly uncovered 22g of the drug ice.

Late in the evening of December 21, police spotted Ms Ghamrawi allegedly driving erratically through the western Sydney suburb of Bankstown. She was eventually forced off the road in nearby Villawood, reported the Daily Telegraph.

Najah Ghamrawi (centre) winning the 2016 Miss Lebanon Emigrant Australia contest.

In the car, which also included a male passenger, police allege they found drugs and cash.

A 20-year-old man was charged with drug offences and dealing with the proceeds of crime and will appear at court in February.

Ms Ghamrawi was not charged with drug offences but was fined $1350 for driving while not wearing a seat belt and not displaying P-plates.

Organisers of the Miss Lebanon Emigrant Australia 2016 pageant have reportedly said they will now strip the striking brunette of her title in the wake of the incident.

Barely five months ago it was all so different as Ms Ghamrawi prepared to take to the stage in Beirut to represent Australia at an international beauty contest shown live on television.

Her competitors included other women of Lebanese heritage living outside the tiny Mediterranean country.

In July, at Sydney’s swish Doltone House venue — looking out over the harbour — she had beaten out competition from all over Australia to win the contest’s local heat.

“To me, being beautiful isn’t about the aesthetics of an individual,” she wrote on her Facebook page at the time.

Najah Ghamrawi at the 2016 Miss Lebanon Emigrant Australia contest. Picture: Facebook/Rizzography

“Beauty without knowledge and virtue is like a rose without scent. Great to stare at, however it is useless.”

The teenage netball fan said her ambition in life was simple and selfless.

“To become a successful secondary teacher predominantly focusing on educating the less fortunate in third world countries.

“Empowering young adults who are less fortunate is definitely a career path I will pursue wholeheartedly.”

Being in a car that allegedly contained a deadly drug may have implications for that path.

Najah Ghamrawi in July heading to Beirut for the Lebanese Miss Emigrants finals. Picture: Facebook

On her Facebook profile, Ms Ghamrawi said she was dedicated to her studies and proclaimed that “knowledge is empowering”.

She talked up both her dual Australian and Lebanese backgrounds. “Being Lebanese Australian has enabled me to share two very diverse and wide cultures that are amazing in their own ways.

“Having the privilege to be able to carry on the rich culture of Lebanese heritage and history throughout my life and experiences while living in a beautiful country is definitely something I take pride in.”

Najah Ghamrawi preparing for the long haul to Beirut.

Shortly after her Australian win, Ms Ghamrawi was snapped posing at Sydney airport, her winner’s sash proudly displayed, as she prepared to take on the rest of the Lebanese diaspora at the global Miss Emigrants contest in Dhour Shweir, outside the capital Beirut.

“At the departure gate, I have only begun my journey,” she gushed.

A video produced ahead of her departure showed Ms Ghamrawi, clad in a burgundy ball gown, by the side of a white Rolls Royce in the shadow of the Sydney Opera House.

By the time she arrived in Lebanon, the pageant whirlwind had begun. With her fellow contestants from Europe and the US, Ms Ghamrawi ceremonially planted a cedar tree and strutted herself on the catwalk live on local station MTV Lebanon.

At the five-star Movenpick Beirut hotel, overlooking the Mediterranean, she cut an elegant figure as she basked in the resort’s pool.

Still of the video of Najah Ghamrawi by the pool in Beirut in happier times.

In a video posted to her Facebook account she said she felt, “happy and relaxed and content and blessed that I’m here”.

Asked what her plan was when she got back to Australia, Ms Ghamrawi said she wanted to concentrate on “charity events” and “to make a big difference”.

But she wasn’t to win the international contest, held in mid August, with Miss Germany taking out the gong.

Organisers of the contest’s Australian arm seem less than impressed at Ms Ghamrawi’s run in with the law. Spokesman Hiam Yazbeck told the Telegraph her, “apparent behaviour was not the image we wish to represent the Australian Lebanese community”.

“Committee members are bitterly disappointed that she has been (allegedly) associated with drugs.”

The Miss Lebanon Emigrant Australia website has no mention of Ms Ghamrawi, instead focusing on the winner of the contest the year before.

In the days before her trip to the centre of the Lebanon limelight, Ms Ghamrawi wrote a long post on social media as she prepared to pack her bags.

“I look back to the day when entering this pageant initially begun,” she wrote.

“A journey into the unknown. A journey that I am certain will provide me with great memories and experiences that will last a lifetime.”

News.com.au has contacted Ms Ghamrawi for comment.