Mel B listed a string of alleged incidents of verbal and physical abuse as she was granted a temporary restraining order against her estranged husband.
In court papers, the former Spice Girl – whose full name is Melanie Brown – described Stephen Belafonte as a “large, extremely aggressive, hostile and violent individual” who was “controlling, manipulative and abusive”.
Stephen has vehemently denied Brown’s allegations, calling them “outrageous and unfounded”.
Here is a summary of the alleged incidents listed in Mel’s complaint.
:: Mel claimed the first violent incident in their marriage happened in November 2007 after she finished runner-up on Dancing With The Stars – the US version of Strictly Come Dancing.
Before she took part in a live TV interview at their LA home, she alleged Stephen went into a “rage” in their bedroom and attacked her.
“He placed both of his hands around my neck and began choking me,” she said.
“He then slammed me down on to the hardwood floor.”
Mel said her children were asleep at the time and she had red marks around her neck that had to be covered with make-up.
“Later I would quickly come to realise that (Stephen’s) beatings and abuse would coincide with my career success,” she said.
“When something good would happen for me, he would beat me down to let me know he was in charge.”
:: In another alleged attack, Mel claimed Stephen punched her in the face when she was working on Australia’s version of the X Factor in July 2012.
The singer, who was a judge on the show, said Stephen “flew into a rage” after he claimed she had been flirting with R&B star Usher.
“(Stephen) punched me with a closed fist in the face causing my lip to split and then swell,” she said.
Mel said she told people on the show that her swollen lip had been caused by an allergic reaction to shellfish.
Producers called for a doctor and she was given a steroid injection, putting her own health at risk, she said.
Mel claimed Stephen threatened to release sex tapes of her if she told anyone what had happened, before calling her a “f****** monkey”, “dumb” and a “derelict”.
She said she later had him banned from the set of the programme.
:: Mel alleged she was assaulted by Stephen after she performed with the Spice Girls at the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics.
She said the pair got into an argument after travelling to Prague the day after the ceremony.
“(Stephen) once again punched me in the face with a closed fist”, she said.
“He then pushed me down on the carpet. I was forced to seek medical attention while in Prague given my face hurt so badly.”
After photos of her injuries appeared in the media, Brown said Belafonte forced her to tweet that she had hurt herself by running on seven-inch high-heeled shoes.
:: Mel said she took an entire of bottle of painkillers in 2014 due to Stephen’s alleged abuse when she was working on The X Factor in the UK.
The singer said the alleged incident happened in a “moment of emotional and physical exhaustion” and she immediately regretted it.
She said she tried to call 999 but claimed Stephen locked her in a bedroom without a phone and told her: “Die, bitch!”
Mel said she “begged” him to let her out and he allegedly turned away an ambulance that her friend had called for her.
She was taken to hospital the next day when a driver arrived to pick her up for work, Mel said.
She remained in hospital for two days with security on guard to prevent Stephen from visiting her, she added.
In the complaint, Mel said her injuries were “clearly visible” when she returned to The X Factor and were reported by the media.
She said she did not wear her wedding ring on the show to “send a message” to Stephen that she was “no longer going to let him abuse me”.
She claimed he flew a therapist to London after the incident and allegedly tipped off the paparazzi to “spin the story away from the spousal abuse towards a potential suicide attempt”.
:: Mel also listed alleged incidents of verbal and emotional abuse in the court documents.
She said that after telling Stephen she could not visit her dying father for some months because of work, he replied: “Suck it up. If he’s going to die he’s going to die.”
She also claimed Stephen thwarted an attempt to arrange a meeting between her daughter Angel and the youngster’s father Eddie Murphy by texting the actor’s assistant pretending to be Mel.
