EXCLUSIVE: Mel B's ex-nanny, who is accused of having an affair with Stephen Belafonte, dodges seven-hour 'tell-all' deposition in the Spice Girl's divorce case because she had 'food poisoning'

  • Lorraine Gilles was due to sit down with Mel B's attorneys last week in the singer's divorce case but cited illness for her no show, DailyMail.com has learned
  • Gilles's husband said 'She was sick from food poisoning the whole week'
  • The 25-year-old nanny has been at the center of the Spice Girl's divorce with Stephen Belafonte after she was accused of being a 'home-wrecker'
  • Gilles denied the affair but claimed she met the couple when she was 18, and alleges they got her drunk and they engaged in  threesomes  
  • Last month, Mel was granted access to a storage locker rented in Gilles's name which contains alleged sex tapes and private photos and memorabilia
  • But a source tells DailyMail.com although Lorraine has been asked to hand over the codes she has not done so

By Ryan Parry West Coast Correspondent For Dailymail.com

Published: 09:19 EDT, 10 August 2017 | Updated: 13:57 EDT, 10 August 2017

The nanny at the center of the Mel B divorce case ducked out of a seven hour 'tell-all' deposition with the former Spice Girl's lawyers, claiming she was unwell, DailyMail.com can reveal.

Lorraine Gilles was due to sit down with Mel's attorneys last week in her divorce case but cited illness for her no show.

In April, Mel was granted a restraining order against Gilles who was ordered by a judge not to harass the singer and to stay 100 yards away from her.

The same month, Gilles sued Mel for portraying her as a 'home-wrecker' and 'prostitute' in a declaration in support of a request for a Domestic Violence Restraining Order against estranged husband Stephen Belafonte.

Mel B was spotted leaving what seemed to be her lawyer's office on Wednesday as her divorce saga with Stephen Belafonte rages on. Her ex-nanny who is involved in their divorce case, was a no-show at a deposition last week 

Mel B was spotted leaving what seemed to be her lawyer's office on Wednesday as her divorce saga with Stephen Belafonte rages on. Her ex-nanny who is involved in their divorce case, was a no-show at a deposition last week 

The singer had alleged that Gilles carried on an affair with Belafonte, whom she also accused of physical and emotional abuse for much of their 10 year marriage, and claims the nanny became pregnant with his child and Belafonte convinced her to get an abortion.

But Gilles said the entire story was a lie and sued Mel - also known as Melanie Brown - for defamation, invasion of privacy and intentional infliction of emotional distress, asking for unspecified damages.

Gilles, 25, claimed that Mel, 42, and Belafonte, 42, targeted her when she first arrived in America from Germany aged 18, got her drunk and they had a threesome.

She claims she never slept with Belafonte without Mel knowing or participating and maintains she has 'nothing to do' with the couple's divorce.

The singer's former nanny Lorraine Gilles (right) ducked out of a tell-all deposition in her ex-boss's divorce case claiming she had 'food poisoning'

The singer's former nanny Lorraine Gilles (right) ducked out of a tell-all deposition in her ex-boss's divorce case claiming she had 'food poisoning'

Gilles has been at the center of Mel and Stephen Belafonte's divorce after it was alleged the three had engaged in a threesome, but the nanny allegedly continued the affair with the singer's husband

Gilles has been at the center of Mel and Stephen Belafonte's divorce after it was alleged the three had engaged in a threesome, but the nanny allegedly continued the affair with the singer's husband

But in court papers filed last month, America's Got Talent judge Mel slammed Gilles's 'improper and unsupported damages' claim saying her declaration was 'absolutely privileged' and the complaint should be dismissed under anti-SLAPP rules.

The singer adds that the only purpose of airing their dirty laundry was to protect herself and the welfare of her young children.

As part of the original court order against Gilles - in what's now become a bitter legal tussle - Mel was also granted access to a storage locker rented in Gilles' name.

She claimed the locker contains alleged sex tapes and private photos Gilles and Belafonte could make public, as well as Spice Girls memorabilia and photos of her late father, who died in March.

Gilles has slammed Mel's allegations as false and sued the singer for defamation

Gilles has slammed Mel's allegations as false and sued the singer for defamation

But a source close to the case told DailyMail.com that Gilles has refused to cooperate.

The source said: 'Lorraine posed a huge threat to Melanie throughout the marriage. On one occasion she told Melanie she had tapes of her having sex with Stephen.

'When the marriage ended, 15 boxes which contained Spice Girls memorabilia and personal effects belonging to Melanie's recently deceased father went missing.

'They had been put into storage and Melanie had been given a combination.

'They were then moved to a different storage facility and the combination changed. Melanie was not able to access the new code because all her effects had been put into a unit in Lorraine's name.'

'Lorraine has been asked to hand over the codes. She has also been asked to give assurance over sex tapes, but has so far refused on both counts.'

In April, Mel was photographed trying to access a storage unit in Los Angeles but was turned away when she realized she didn't have the correct codes.

Mel B has claimed her estranged husband Stephen Belafonte was physically and emotionally abusive, the couple have one daughter
Mel B with daughter's Madison Belafonte, Angel Murphy Brown, and step daughter Giselle Belafonte

Mel B filed for divorced in March this year, claiming her estranged husband Stephen Belafonte was physically and emotionally abusive. The couple have one daughter

The source says Mel's camp is now suspicious about why Gilles didn't turn up for her deposition last week.

'Now she has refused to turn up for a seven hour questioning session with Melanie's lawyers, surely this is not the behavior of someone with nothing to hide,' the source said.

But when DailyMail.com asked Gilles's husband Michael Bleu about her absence and he denied she had 'trumped up' being sick, saying his wife had food poisoning.

Bleu, founder of a tech start up in the events industry, said: 'She was sick from food poisoning the whole week, she had to be driven to the doctor and she had medicine and she missed several days of work, this is not some trumped up thing, my dad said it was probably from the barbecue we had on Tuesday night.'

The source added: 'Something isn't right, maybe there is no physical threat (from Gilles) but the emotional distress and the emotional threat is huge.

'Not only is Melanie deprived of hugely personal and emotional possessions from her father as well as all her Spice memorabilia, but the issue of the sex tapes is like a bomb waiting to explode.

'Lorraine has made a career out of coming across as a sweet, hard-done by girl but she knows what she is doing.'

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