Mel B has had the tattoo she had dedicated to her ex-husband, Stephen Belafonte, sliced off her rib cage.
The former Spice Girls had the words “Stephen, till death do us part you own my heart” etched across the flesh on her upper body as a tribute to their 10-year marriage but, rather than go through the lengthy process of having the inking lasered off following their split earlier this year, she decided to slice off his name via a painful operation, leaving her with 13 red stitches, but has left the rest of the wording.
Speaking to MailOnline, she said, “I wanted the tattoo removed to help close the final chapter on a toxic relationship.
“Even though I’ve taken the steps to remove Stephen’s name from my body, the domestic abuse will forever remain with me.”
The 42-year-old beauty filed for divorce from the TV producer in March this year amid claims he had been physically and emotionally abusive towards her. Following months of bitter disputes, they have agreed to share custody of their six-year-old daughter Madison (though a judge has yet to sign it off).
Mel will pay her estranged husband spousal support for the next three years, but the exact amount listed has been redacted in the documents.
And, in return, Belafonte has agreed to destroy any compromising video footage of the “America’s Got Talent” judge, who previously claimed he and their former nanny Lorraine Gilles had tried to extort her with the sex tapes.
The former couple will sell their marital home and divide the profits, but first Belafonte will be allowed back into the abode to retrieve his personal possessions, including childhood photos, clothing and artwork.
The agreement was reached around the same time Mel withdrew her domestic violence order against the 42-year-old producer.
The “Wannabe” singer, who also has daughters Phoenix, 18, and Angel, 10, from past relationships, previously claimed she had been “drugged” throughout her 10-year marriage to Stephen.
Philip Cohen, one of Belafonte’s lawyers, said, “Miss Brown now takes the position she was drugged by Mr. Belafonte throughout the course of the marriage.”
