Mel B’s husband denies assault

The husband of Mel B has vehemently rejected claims he might be responsible for apparent marks on her face and body.

The former Spice Girl provoked fevered speculation after she returned to The X Factor UK on Sunday with what appeared to be scratches and a bruised cheek.

The judge came back for the final after being admitted to hospital on Thursday but there was no explanation for her absence.

Viewers took to Twitter to make comments about the mysterious marks, linking them to her husband Stephen Belafonte, who has previously been accused of being violent and possessive towards a girlfriend.

But he described the remarks as “disgusting”. He said, using typical celeb Twitter speak: “I don’t usually respond to Twitter msgs but I will respond to comments of hitting wife which I think are quite disgusting untrue.

“Mel was very ill a bunch of doctors help her get better if fans can’t just relax B4 being negative they r not real fans of Mel B.”

It was just a month ago that Belafonte presented his wife with a wedding ring “upgrade” — a seven carat diamond the size of a ten pence piece.

He handed her the ring just as she was about to go on air for The X Factor — a dramatic, romantic gesture. On Sunday night, however, the giant bauble was visibly absent from Mel Brown’s wedding finger.

When contacted Mel B’s agent and publicist would neither confirm nor deny suggestions the marriage was over.

On Sunday, Belafonte was seen outside the Kensington block of flats where he and Mel, 39, have been renting an apartment since October, overseeing the loading of about 20 suitcases into a minivan.

According to an X Factor source, Mel B was on her way to Wembley Arena on Thursday afternoon for a press conference with the judges and finalists when she was taken ill.

“The driver, who has known Mel for a while and is a good guy, took her to A&E, he was that concerned, and she was admitted. She was discharged on Sunday after asking the doctors if she could go at lunchtime.”

Speculation about the marriage has been so intense partly on account of Belafonte’s history.

In 2007, shortly after their marriage in June that year, it emerged that Belafonte had been charged with battery in America after being arrested for attacking his then girlfriend, Nicole Contreras.

He pleaded “no contest” to the battery charge — which the judge stated was the same as a guilty plea — and was ordered to take part in a Domestic Violence Batterers’ Programme.