The 'We Belong Together' singer claims in her legal action against Lianna Azarian that the latter tried to extort $8 million from her using the secretly filmed footage after being let go in 2017.
- Jan 17, 2019
AceShowbiz - Mariah Carey is suing her former assistant for allegedly filming her in secret and using the "embarrassing" videos to blackmail her after she was fired.
The "We Belong Together" singer has filed a lawsuit against Lianna Azarian, who allegedly filmed her "personal activities" without her knowledge and demanded $8 million (£6.2 million) from the pop diva otherwise she would release the "embarrassing" videos and other information which would be extremely damaging to Mariah's reputation if they ever got out.
According to the legal document obtained by TMZ.com, Azarian showed the videos she'd secretly filmed to friends and told them she would sell them if she was ever fired.
Azarian was let go in November 2017 after two and a half years of serving as an executive assistant, and Mariah claims that's when her blackmail scheme began.
The singer claimed that she demanded the videos and other evidence back but has had no luck. Mariah, who is suing for unspecified damages, does not detail what is on the videos in the lawsuit, although some are reportedly described as "intimate" in nature.
In addition to the blackmail allegation, the mother of two claims that shortly after she hired Azarian in March 2015 the assistant went on a spending spree with her credit card, buying personal items and using the singer's name to secure herself good discounts, despite being paid as much as $327,000 (£254,000) a year.
The news comes shortly after it was reported that Mariah and her former manager Stella Bulochnikov had reached a confidential settlement in their bitter legal battle.
Bulochnikov, who appeared in the singer's docuseries "Mariah's World", went after the "Heartbreaker" hitmaker in April (18), five months after the pair parted ways, and accused Mariah of failing to pay her more than $100 million (£77.9 million) in commissions she believed she was owed.
