Melanie 'Mel B' Brown's Ex-Husband Stephen Belafonte Sues Singer for Defamation in $5 Million Lawsuit

• Melanie “Mel B” Brown’s ex-husband Stephen Belafonte files defamation lawsuit against Spice Girls singer
• Belafonte, with whom Brown shares a 12-year-old daughter, says he “never physically, sexually, emotionally or financially abused” the star
• She repeatedly accused him of physical abuse, rape and more, both in interviews and in her 2018 memoir. Brutally honest

Melanie “Mel B” Brown’s ex-husband Stephen Belafonte has filed a defamation lawsuit against the Spice Girls singer, claiming her abuse claims against him are false and part of a “deliberate” campaign to “destroy” him.

Belafonte filed his lawsuit in a Florida court on Wednesday, May 29 (Brown’s 49th birthday), and said in documents obtained by PEOPLE that he “never physically, sexually, emotionally or financially abused” Brown.

Belafonte (49) shares 12-year-old daughter Madison and primary custody of the child with the singer. In his filing, he said he remained silent for years “to protect his young daughter from protracted and public litigation.” Now, however, he wants to “stand up for himself.”

A representative for Brown did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment.

Melanie “Mel B” Brown with her MBE in May 2022. Dominic Lipinski-Pool/Getty

Brown and Belafonte married in 2007 and she filed for divorce in March 2017; the split was settled later that year and finalized in 2018. Since then, she has publicly and repeatedly claimed that Belafonte abused her, writing at length about her allegations in her 2018 memoir. Brutally honest.

In his lawsuit, Belafonte says Brown filed a temporary restraining order against him in 2017, then withdrew it “after it became clear there was no evidence to support his false allegations.” She says they lost access to their home and children because of her claims.

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In her restraining order filing, Brown said this while on tape X Factor Australia In 2012, Belafonte accused her of flirting with Usher on set and hit her “with a closed fist in the face that made my lip split and then swell up.” The star said she told co-workers she had an allergic reaction to shellfish to cover for her then-husband.

But in his complaint, Belafonte claims the attack was a “complete fabrication,” and that paparazzi photos taken that night show Brown had “no signs of injury,” and that she appeared on TV two days later “without any evidence” of being shot. lips or swelling.

Brown told Howie Mandel on his podcast last year that she “came really close to death” multiple times “at the hands of my abuser” and was too terrified to go to the police, but her children Phoenix, 25, Angel, 17, and Madison “witnessed it many times.”

Mel B and Stephen Belafonte.

“I think it’s really important to be honest about what happens when you leave abuse, because it’s not as easy as some people might think,” the singer told PEOPLE in March. “For example, my mother would say, ‘What about you? You are fine now. You left him.’ And I would say, ‘Yes, but now I have to pick up the pieces and I have to deal with the shame and the guilt, and I want to protect my children.’ And I don’t want to block out what happened because I did it for a little while, and you get PTSD.”

She is currently an ambassador for the charity Women’s Aid, a UK-based organization for women fleeing domestic violence, and was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) for her advocacy in 2022. The Belafontein submission includes a screenshot of Brown allegedly texting members of her group Spice Girls Geri Halliwell, “Charity doesn’t pay the bills, everyone [knows] that,” then asking about tour ideas.

The Spice Girls 1997

Brenda Chase/Getty

Belafonte’s lawsuit states that he has had custody of Madison since 2019 and that during those years, Brown “barely maintained contact” with the child, allegedly visiting her in the United States only once in the last four years.

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His lawsuit also cites previous defamation lawsuits against his ex, including one filed in 2017 by the couple’s former nanny Lorraine Gilles. She sued Brown after the singer publicly said Gilles got pregnant by Belafonte while the two were having an extramarital affair. The lawsuit states that Brown “later admitted that her allegations regarding the affair between Ms. Gilles and Mr. Belafonte were false,” and eventually paid Gilles more than $2 million in a settlement.

Belafonte is seeking at least $5 million in damages, as well as a jury trial, punitive damages and an injunction against Brown.

Brown is currently engaged to hairdresser Rory McPhee. She and her Spice Girls co-stars recently reunited at Victoria Beckham’s 50th birthday bash in April and performed their 1996 hit “Mama.”

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 or go to thehotline.org. All calls are free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.

Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education