Current:Home > MyVanderpump Rules' Raquel Leviss Sends Legal Letters to Cast Over "Intimate" Tom Sandoval FaceTime -FutureFinance
Vanderpump Rules' Raquel Leviss Sends Legal Letters to Cast Over "Intimate" Tom Sandoval FaceTime
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Date:2025-04-19 06:28:03
The Tom Sandoval cheating scandal just got messier: Raquel Leviss is SUR-ving legal letters.
Her lawyer alleges that her Vanderpump Rules co-star recorded an "intimate" FaceTime session with her without her consent, according to the letters obtained by E! News. The documents are dated March 3, days before she broke her silence amid allegations of a months-long affair with Tom—a romance that led to his split from fellow cast member Ariana Madix after nine years.
In legal letters sent to him, his ex Ariana and other members of the cast, the attorney warned them not to share the recording or risk breaking the law. It's not revealed what the video contained.
"We understand that sometime recently you and Ms. Leviss engaged in an intimate exchange on Facetime, which you recorded without the permission of Ms. Leviss," the lawyer wrote to Tom. "California is what is called a 'two party consent' state, and accordingly such recording is illegal in California and can potentially expose you to both civil and criminal penalties."
The lawyer continued, "On behalf of Ms. Leviss, we hereby demand that you delete the recording from your phone and from the cloud and from any other manner or method in which the recording may exist."
Additionally, her legal team demanded to know the names of any people Tom sent the recording to, advising him that any distribution would violate the California Penal Code.
In a letter to Ariana, Raquel's attorney wrote, "We understand that sometime recently you became aware of a recording illegally made by Tom Sandoval of an intimate Facetime exchange between Mr. Sandoval and Ms. Leviss. We appreciate the distress that this may have caused you. Nevertheless, we must inform you that any re-recording of this recording is illegal in California...accordingly, if you re-recorded this initial recording such re-recording could expose you to criminal and civil penalties."
Raquel's legal team demanded she delete the recording from her phone and the cloud if she does have a copy, and again sought the names of people she may have sent it to.
A similar letter sent to Vanderpump Rules stars did not address them by name, but rather began with the words, "Dear Gentlepersons," per the letter obtained by E! News.
E! News has reached out to Tom and Ariana's reps but hasn't received a comment.
Tom addressed the scandal and his breakup for the first time March 7. "I want to apologize to Ariana," he wrote on Instagram. "I made mistakes, I was selfish, and made reckless decisions that hurt somebody I love. No one deserves to feel that pain so traumatically and publicly."
Raquel later addressed the cheating allegations for the first time. "I want to apologize for my actions and my choices foremost to Ariana, and to my friends and the fans so invested in our relationships," she wrote in a March 8 Instagram post. "There is no excuse, I am not a victim and I must own my actions and I deeply regret hurting Ariana."
A day later, Raquel shared where she stands with Tom in a statement to E! News. "Besides the indefensible circumstances surrounding our relationship, my feelings for Tom have always been sincere and born out of a loving friendship," she said. "Knowing how many people we hurt, I need to understand my choices and learn to make better ones."
She continued, "I need to take care of my health, work on self-growth and take time to be ok with being alone. I care for Tom, and I don't want to label anything or predict what lies ahead. Right now, I need to heal."
(E! and Bravo are part of the NBCUniversal family).
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