Mel B's Husband - Wife Beater and Duck Killer

A couple of days ago, it transpired that Melanie Brown from the Spice Girls - although deep in a custody battle against the father of her child, Eddie Murphy - has finally moved on from the disastrous relationship by getting secretly married in Las Vegas with movie producer Stephen Belafonte. Apparently, the two kept the nuptials a secret because they did not want the story to have a negative effect on Mel's chances of winning the case against Eddie.

Melanie and Stephen got together (according to her publicist, they had been on friendly terms many years before suddenly realizing that it was love that kept them together) four months after she gave birth to Eddie Murphy's child. They kissed and then they understood: this was the real deal. They flew to Vegas and exchanged vows and, upon their arrival back home, acted in such a way so as not to cause any suspicions in the media. Two months later, the secret was out.

Now, two months and a couple of days later, it turns out that Mr. Belafonte is far from the knight in shining armor we were tempted to believe he was. Although Melanie claims that he's like a rock on which she can rely in this bitter custody case, the truth is that his shady past should make her have second thoughts about the whole marriage thing. First of all, Stephen is known for a past history of violence against women and taking responsibility is not really his middle name. And, if all that weren't enough, there is even an arrest warrant on his name in New Jersey for killing a duck.

Stansbury (his real name, which he chose to change to hide his not-so-shiny past) was involved in at least two cases of domestic violence, one of them being against the mother of his own child. After denying that he ever fathered the baby Nicole Contreras was carrying, Belafonte repeatedly physically and verbally abused her, up to the point in which the woman could take it no more and went to the police. A judge thought it would be better not to send the assailant to prison, sentencing him instead to a one-year domestic violence program. Which, by the way, he completed in two years!

But it turns out that Belafonte's violent tendencies are not manifested only against women, but also against poor defenseless animals. The self-titled producer is now on a black list in his native New Jersey, after admitting to having killed a bird with a brick and fleeing to Los Angeles without paying the $500 court fee. An arrest warrant has been issued on his name and, if he's caught in the area, he will be imprisoned, an Ocean County court spokesperson said yesterday.

Meanwhile, Melanie's mother is very concerned about her daughter's decision to tie the knot so soon after giving birth and after coming out of what was certainly a very difficult breakup. In a very recent interview, Andrea Brown says that she believes Melanie just made the mistake of her live, by getting married to a man she hardly knows and who's only taking advantage of her. Unfortunately, she claims, she can't get in touch with her because the new Mrs. Belafonte keeps dodging her calls.