Legal

Tulisa settles with MC Ultra over sex tape

By | Published on Friday 13 July 2012

Tulisa Contostavlos

Tulisa Contostavlos has won a formal apology from former boyfriend MC Ultra, real name Justin Edwards, over the sex tape he distributed online earlier this year.

As previously reported, the video featuring the former N-Dubz singer surfaced online in March, via a website selling the six minute recording for $5.99 a download. However, the video was quickly taken offline after lawyers for the ‘X-Factor’ judge gained a court order against the London company operating the website that was distributing the footage.

Although, when rumours of a sex tape first surfaced last year, Contostavlos’s legal reps issued a statement saying that the video was “100% fake”, after the actual recording went online Tulisa issued a statement of her own via YouTube admitting that it was real, adding that it was Edwards who had filmed it, and who had probably uploaded it too.

Constavlos then launched a lawsuit against Edwards and a number of other defendants. The singer’s ex initially denied responsibility, claiming that making such a video publicly available was “ungentlemanly”. However, at a hearing earlier this week his lawyer read out a statement saying: “Mr Edwards has admitted responsibility for publication of the video, apologised for it, and promised not to do it again”.

Although Edwards was not in court yesterday, according to The Telegraph, Constavlos’ solicitor Jonathon Coad confirmed that the rapper had offered his client “sincere apologies” and promised not to speak about their relationship in public again.

Coad added that the publication of the video was a breach of privacy “of the most severe kind imaginable”, adding: “[Tulisa] suffered and continues to suffer very serious distress at this wholly unjustified and unlawful interference with her rights. She has been particularly distressed by the wholly untrue allegation made by some that she was in some way complicit with the release of the footage. She was not, as this statement makes clear”.

Outside the court, Contostavlos herself said: “I am relieved that this is finally over. It has been a very testing few months and this was not a case I ever wanted to go through. Justin Edwards’s actions were to spite me, make money and ruin my career. He has succeeded in none of these things. I stand here today a stronger, wiser young woman who has taken this experience and learnt from it”.

She continued: “I am disgusted by Justin and saddened by the people that believed I released the footage myself. Today the truth has prevailed. After months of lying to the public and lying in court, Justin has finally admitted to being guilty and I hope justice is served. I would now like to draw a line under this and put it in the past … Justin messed with the wrong woman”.

It seems that there was no financial settlement involved between Contostavlos and Edwards. However, she will continue to pursue a number of other defendants over their alleged involvement in distributing the video.



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