Strictly judge Motsi Mabuse could be jailed after making explosive claims about her ex-husband
STRICTLY Come Dancing judge Motsi Mabuse has been threatened with jail by her ex-husband if she does not retract claims that he controlled her.
The BBC star is being sued for £70,000 by Timo Kulczak after accusing him in her autobiography of restricting her access to cash and even deciding what she ate.
Motsi, 42, has now refused to settle the writ — meaning the case is heading to court.
In a bitter twist, Timo’s lawyers have also asked a court to jail the dance legend for up to six months or fine her £250,000 if she ever repeats the claims from her book.
The measure has been put in place as part of a “cease and desist” clause in the writ.
Timo’s lawyer, Samy Hammad, said: “Ms Mabuse is refusing to pay, and so the court now has to decide.
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“All we just want her to do is to retract the untruths published about him, and to compensate him accordingly.
“My client’s reputation has repeatedly been trashed.
“You have to threaten a penalty saying if you do it again, this is what I want in terms of money, or in terms of the prison sentence.”
Motsi alleges in Finding My Own Rhythm: My Story that during their 11-year marriage, Timo, 45, paid her an allowance from her dance teaching and TV earnings.
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She also says he rejected her please to have a baby and controlled her diet — allegations he refutes.
According to the writ, Motsi must stop “implying that the plaintiff made the defendant suffer during their marriage”.
It also demands that she declares “publicly the statements published in the book and cited press reports are untrue”.
The lawsuit has been filed at Offenburg regional court in Germany.
As a German citizen, sources said Motsi cannot ignore it.
She will be given a deadline to respond and a default judgment could be made if she does not.
If a hearing goes ahead, Motsi, or her lawyer, would have to appear.
Motsi and Timo — who met at a dance tournament — married in 2003.
They divorced in 2014.
Motsi had moved to Germany from her native South Africa at the age of 18 to be with him.
She wed her new dance partner Evgenij Vozynuk in 2017.
The couple have a daughter and run a dance school together near Frankfurt.
Motsi, who is the sister of double Strictly winner Oti Mabuse, 33, was a competitor and judge on Germany’s Let's Dance.
She joined Strictly’s judging panel in 2019, replacing retired ballerina Darcey Bussell, 54.
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Tonight, a spokesman for Motsi said there was “no legal basis” for Timo’s lawsuit.
They added: “It is untrue our client faces imprisonment with regards to her ex-husband’s civil lawsuit, or that a fine, which would only be payable if our client culpably violates a court order, would be more than a nominal amount.”
