Former Spice Girl Mel B has been granted a temporary restraining order against her estranged husband after accusing him of physical abuse.

A Los Angeles judge granted the order after the singer filed court documents claiming Stephen Belafonte abused her physically and emotionally throughout their 10-year marriage.

The 41-year-old singer, whose real name is Melanie Brown, said her husband beat her repeatedly, forced her into unwanted sex acts and threatened to leak sex tapes.

Mr Belafonte, a 41-year-old Hollywood film producer, has told celebrity website TMZ he denies all the allegations, saying he is "distraught" by "how this is going to affect our children".

Image: The couple pictured in 2008

According to the site, Ms Brown claims Mr Belafonte forced her to "participate in sexual intercourse with random women", acts which he allegedly then videotaped in order blackmail her.


The long list of accusations, according to TMZ, also include fits of rage and jealousy, during which the film producer accused Ms Brown of flirting with other men, punched her and abused her to "emotional and physical exhaustion".

The documents filed in the Los Angeles Superior Court list the couple's separation date as 28 December.

Mr Belafonte has been ordered to stay away from the singer and their three children - the couple's daughter Madison and Ms Brown's two daughters from previous relationships with dancer Jimmy Gulzar and Eddie Murphy.

On Friday, TMZ released photos of police searching the couple's home.

The couple married in Las Vegas in 2007.

In 2012, Ms Brown posted a photo of herself with a bruise on her chin, claiming she fell while running.

Now, she says her husband had beaten her and forced her to lie about the bruise.

Idon't usually respond to Twitter msgs but I will respond to comments of hitting my wife which I think are quite disgusting un true! — Stephen Belafonte (@Stephenthinks1) December 15, 2014

In 2014, the couple became the subject of tabloid gossip when Ms Brown was reportedly taken to hospital with stomach pains, leading to rumours of domestic abuse.

Mr Belafonte denied them at the time in a tweet, writing: "I don't usually respond to Twitter msgs but I will respond to comments of hitting my wife which I think are quite disgusting un true!"