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Image: Mel B via Instagram
Mel B has alleged that Stephen Belafonte was physically abusive, forced her to perform sex acts and threatened and extorted her in documents filed as part of a temporary restraining order she was granted against her husband of 10 years.
The shocking allegations, as seen by TMZ and People, claim the former Spice Girl, full name Melanie Brown, has been living in fear of her husband throughout their decade-long marriage, during which they became parents to daughter Madison, five.
One of the accounts of alleged abuse at the hands of Belafonte, who Mel filed for divorce from last month, involved him allegedly punching and pushing her down onto a carpeted floor after she performed with the Spice Girls at the London Olympics closing ceremonies. The singer said her skin was “scabbed over from the rug burns”, and that he forced her to tweet that she hurt herself by running in high heels.
The 41-year-old X Factor Australia judge did indeed tweet a photo of her face with a mark on it in August 2012, writing “Running in 7 inch Louboutin [sic] no good!! I’m wearing Prauge on my face!!!”
Image: Mel B via Twitter
In the statement, the British star also alleges that Stephen extorted her by secretly recording the pair during sex acts, and then threatening to make the videos public if she didn’t have trysts with him and other women. She also claims that he got their nanny pregnant.
The horrific allegations only continue, with Mel claiming her husband once locked her in the bathroom after she confessed to taking an overdose of aspirin. She said she regretted the decision and wanted to call emergency services, but he did not let her.
According to Brown, her driver drove her to hospital the next morning where she was admitted and stayed for 48 hours.
The star said her husband’s abuse would intensify when she was having successful moments in her career, or when he became jealous of her interactions with other celebrities in the public eye, and that he would “beat me down to let me know he was in charge.”
Image: Mel B via Instagram
In 2014 fans questioned if the couple’s relationship was abusive when she appeared at the X Factor UK finale with marks on her arms after a hospital stay. Stephen denied the rumours in a tweet at the time.
She says she made several attempts to leave Stephen but he threatened to ruin her career by releasing sex tapes of her and taking custody of her children.
“[He] threatened me with violence and threatened to destroy my life in every possible way … destroy my career and take my kids from me.”
The allegations are in stark contrast to the image the couple projected to the world. Since their marriage in 2007, the pair have frequently walked the red carpet together smiling, been photographed on luxurious holidays, and posted loving shout-outs to each other on social media.
Belafonte, a movie producer, has denied the allegations to TMZ saying he is “shocked” and “distraught”.
“I think someone’s trying to set me up to look like a bad guy.”
