Amber Heard was secretly arrested for domestic violence in 2009

Amber Heard was reportedly slapped with domestic violence charges in 2009 following a fight with a former girlfriend, it has been revealed.

The actress is currently in the midst of divorcing husband Johnny Depp, who she has accused of physical and emotional abuse, and now details about her past romance struggles have been unearthed by TMZ.com.

According to police documents, Amber became involved in a public altercation with photographer Tasya van Ree on 14 September, 2009, when she allegedly hit her then-domestic partner in the arm while at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Washington.

The Danish Girl star was arrested and booked for misdemeanor domestic violence, and she faced the charge in court the next day.

However, prosecutors decided against pursuing the count as both women were residents of California, not Seattle.

Amber and Tasya subsequently split, and the 30-year-old went on to date Depp after meeting him on the set of 2011 movie The Rum Diary.

They wed in February, 2015, but the romance did not last and Amber filed to end her 15-month marriage on 23 May (16). Four days later, the estranged couple hit headlines again as the actress obtained a domestic violence restraining order against the Pirates of the Caribbean star.

She claimed Depp assaulted her during her birthday party on 21 April (16) and then disappeared for a month. The couple allegedly fought on his return on 21 May (16), and Heard claims her husband threw an iPhone at her face, causing the bruising she showed off as she attended court for the protective order last month (May16).

Depp's representative previously blasted the assault accusations, stating, "Amber is attempting to secure a premature financial resolution by alleging abuse."

Heard and Depp, who is currently touring overseas with his rock band the Hollywood Vampires, are due to face off in court on 17 June (16).