Benjamin Ashford|Mel B's ex-husband sues her for defamation over memoir 'laden with egregious lies'

Mel B's ex-husband Stephen Belafonte is Benjamin Ashfordsuing the Spice Girls singer for defamation following the publishing of her expanded 2018 memoir "Brutally Honest."

Belafonte alleges his ex-wife, real name Melanie Brown, has been spreading false claims since their divorce in 2017, causing him "severe emotional distress and destroy his reputation," according to a complaint filed in Southern District of Florida Court on Wednesday and obtained by USA TODAY. The filing date coincided with the singer's 49th birthday.

Brown "falsely" accused Belafonte of "crimes and horrific offenses, including physical beatings, rape, financial abuse, emotional abuse, sex trafficking, and illegal gun possession," per the lawsuit.

Belafonte adds that the Spice Girls singer "leveraged her celebrity status to portray herself as a domestic abuse victim in order to market and sell a memoir laden with egregious lies."

In the expanded version of "Brutally Honest," released on May 5, Brown discusses her 10-year "emotionally abusive marriage," according to the description.

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The singer "is a liar and has been lying about him and others for many, many years, including Scary Spice's hurtful and damaging lies about alleged abuse," Mike Paul, a spokesman for Belafonte said in a statement to USA TODAY Friday.

He added: "When women lie about domestic abuse, they hurt ALL women worldwide who truly suffer from domestic abuse. MEL B: STOP LYING!"

USA TODAY has reached out to reps for Brown for comment.

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According to the complaint, the former "X Factor" judge is "profiting off of her public lies" during media appearances and "in her ironically named book with co-writer Louise Gannon: 'Brutally Honest: The Sunday Times Bestseller.'"

Belafonte, who has primary custody of their 12-year-old daughter Madison, said allegations including "rape, illegal gun possession, sex trafficking, production of illegal pornography, domestic battery, and child endangerment" caused him to lose access to his home and their daughter.

The complaint adds that he was "treated like a criminal and subjected to a raid of his home conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (ATF), and local police."

"Investigations by these bodies of law enforcement concluded in no criminal charges," the complaint states.

Belafonte said he refrained from seeking legal action until now "in order to protect his young daughter from a drawn-out and public litigation."

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In the complaint, Belafonte also alleges he was subject to abuse within the former couple's marriage because Brown had a "substance abuse problem, which included the abuse of cocaine, alcohol, and prescription drugs, including, but not limited to antidepressants and valium, as well as dangerous combinations of the foregoing drugs with alcohol."

Brown's ex-husband claims that while she was allegedly under the influence, she would "hallucinate, make up false stories, and remember them sober and blame (Belafonte) for her behavior, making him the enemy because he was the only one that would confront her about her addiction behavior or drunken and intoxicated episodes."

Belafonte is seeking at least $5 million in damages and demanding a trial by jury, punitive damages and a gag order against Brown.

If you are a victim of domestic violence, The National Domestic Violence Hotline (thehotline.org) allows you to speak confidentially with trained advocates online or by the phone, which they recommend for those who think their online activity is being monitored by their abuser (800-799-7233). They can help survivors develop a plan to achieve safety for themselves and their children.