Mel B’s Ex Demands $100k After Spice Girls’ Star ‘Falsely’ Accused Him of Substance Abuse Issues in Custody War
Dec. 1 2023, Published 7:30 a.m. ET
Mel B’s ex-husband said the Spice Girls star accused him of having substance abuse issues without any evidence to back up her claims — and now he wants her to cough up a six-figure sum to cover his legal bills.
According to court documents obtained by RadarOnline.com, Stephen Belafonte demanded Mel B be ordered to pay him $100k.
Mel and Stephen were married from 2007 to 2017. The exes share an 11-year-old daughter Madison.
Madison has lived primarily with Stephen in Los Angeles since 2019. At the time, Mel B moved back to the UK after her work Visa expired.
Earlier this year, Stephen asked for permission to move to Florida for work. In response, the singer objected to the request and asked that she be awarded primary custody of Madison.
She said Madison would benefit from living with her mom and sisters in the UK.
“Madison’s sisters, Angel and Phoenix, relocated with me to the U.K. where we live minutes from nearly all of our friends and family. Moving to the U.K. without Madison was devastating for the girls and me. The three girls have always had a very close relationship and enjoy spending time together. Madison would thrive socially, emotionally, and academically if she were permitted to live with me and her sisters in the U.K. during the school year,” she wrote.
“I am confident that Madison’s best interest would be served if she lived primarily in the U.K. with her sisters and me,” she said.
Mel said she had “Serious concerns about Stephen’s ability to care” for their child.
In court documents, Mel accused her ex of “often leaving Madison in Los Angeles in the care of a revolving door of various third parties.”
Mel claimed to have a third party who would speak about Stephen’s alleged bad behavior.
The singer said the third party was singer Malu Trevejo, who was a former client of Stephen.
Recently, the judge granted Stephen’s request to move to Florida. The court said it would allow Mel additional time to bring forth her alleged witness.
Now, in his newly filed motion, Stephen claimed Mel had once again failed to present any evidence to back up her claims despite being given months.
Stephen said Mel has failed to produce any credible evidence. Further, he claimed that Mel privately told Madison she would be dropping her fight for custody after Madison told her she wanted to live with Stephen.
In addition, Stephen claimed Mel has missed 11 days of FaceTime calls with Madison in September.
He said she missed another 18 days of FaceTime visitation in October and 12 days in November. Stephen claimed Mel failed to visit her daughter when she came to Los Angeles for work in recent months.
Never Miss an
Daily updates from the heart of Hollywood, right to your inbox
By entering your email and clicking Sign Up, you’re agreeing to let us send you customized marketing messages about us and our advertising partners. You are also agreeing to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.
“There has been no effort on her part to visit or express any desire to see Madison during her time in the United States,” he said.
Stephen demanded Mel pay him $100k to cover the fees he paid defending himself in the case. A judge has yet to rule.
