LOS ANGELES:

Variety

Mel B

Spice Girl Melanie ‘Mel B’ Brown was granted a restraining order against her estranged husband after filing court papers claiming he had emotionally and physically abused her for much of their 10-year marriage.

The British singer, 41, said her husband, TV producer Stephen Belafonte, had beaten her and destroyed her self esteem, threatening to leak a sex tape to the media if she left him, according to court documents filed in Los Angeles Superior Court to support her request for a restraining order.

The request was granted on Monday and a full hearing was scheduled on April 24.

Representatives for Brown did not immediately return requests for comment on Tuesday.

Attempts by Reuters to reach Belafonte by telephone were unsuccessful and no lawyer or representative for Belafonte was listed in the court documents. (RTRS)