Originally appeared on E! Online
Kim Kardashian and Kris Jenner are taking legal action against Ray J.
The “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” alums are suing the R&B singer, whose real name is William Ray Norwood Jr., for defamation after he said a federal criminal racketeering investigation was launched against them, according to the lawsuit obtained by Rolling Stone.
Ray J had stated in the TMZ documentary series “United States vs. Sean Combs,” which premiered in May, that “racketeering charges against the Kardashians would be appropriate” and “if you told me the Kardashians was being charged for racketeering, I might believe it.”
Now, Kardashian and Jenner are slamming what they say in the suit are “blatantly false” statements from her ex.
“Kris Jenner and Kim Kardashian have never brought a defamation claim before nor have they been distracted by noise,” their attorney Alex Spiro told E! News in a statement, “but this false and serious allegation left no choice.”
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In the filing, Kardashian and Jenner said that the “One Wish” singer’s comments in the docuseries preceded subsequent comments he made during a Sept. 24 livestream, including, “The federal RICO I’m about to drop on Kris and Kim is about to be crazy” and “the feds is coming.”
Ray J also allegedly referenced the federal racketeering trial against Sean “Diddy Combs, saying the alleged investigation into the Kardashians would be “worse than Diddy,” per the suit.
Kardashian and Jenner said they believe the allegations levied by Ray J — whose infamous 2002 sex tape with Kardashian surfaced months before the 2007 premiere of “Keeping Up With the Kardashians” — are part of his ongoing strife against the family.
“Unable to accept the end of his fleeting relationship with Ms. Kardashian over 20 years ago, Ray J has repeatedly sought to attach himself to plaintiffs’ names and exploit their prominence for personal gain,” the lawsuit filed in Los Angeles County Superior Court reads. “Ray J’s defamatory statements about plaintiffs are part of a broader campaign of harassment designed to generate publicity for his flailing career and satisfy his acknowledged animosity toward the Kardashian family.”
The pair are seeking unspecified compensatory and punitive damages due to the harm to their personal and professional reputations.
E! News has reached out to a rep for Ray J for comment and has not yet heard back.
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