Mariah Carey is not playing with her former assistant. The songstress has filed a lawsuit against Lianna “Azarian” Shakhnazarian after allegedly blackmailing her for $8 million after secretly recording her without her knowledge.
Back in February, Carey also accused Shakhnazarian of destroying crucial evidence that would have helped the singer’s case against her. The multi-platinum Grammy award-winning artist also included that her ex-assistant violated a non-disclosure agreement.
Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Andrew Borrok has granted Carey’s request to penalize Shakhnazarian, indicating that she destroyed two videos and WhatsApp messages that could have helped Carey fight her case.
The judge also discovered that Shakhnazarian spilled water on her old cell phone and got rid of it after the suit had already been filed against her. It was also the destruction of evidence that could have been useful to Carey.
“Trading in her cellphone without taking any measures to save the videos, messages, and other data after this lawsuit was filed, when Ms. Shakhnazarian had an undeniable duty to preserve evidence, was grossly negligent, if not intentional,” according to Borrok’s decision on Friday. The decision continues stating that Shakhnazarian’s “actions constituted spoliation of critical evidence and severely prejudiced Ms. Carey’s ability to prosecute her case.”
Borrok also ordered Shakhnazarian to turn in her current cell phone for a forensic examination and ordered her to pay Carey’s attorneys fees for that issue.
