Allegations posted online claim contestant was involved with a married man
A female contestant on a currently airing dating reality show has been accused of having a relationship with a married man who has children. The show's producers said they are looking into the matter.
According to entertainment industry sources Monday, allegations against the woman, identified only as "A," surfaced on Blind, an anonymous online community popular among office workers.
A user who described themselves as a "public interest whistleblower" posted June 6 under the title "Moral vetting failure of a dating reality show contestant," accusing A of being "the perpetrator of an affair that destroyed a family and a defendant in a lawsuit for damages brought by the aggrieved spouse."
The author claimed A "has consistently refused to acknowledge the affair and, without so much as a gesture of apology, has instead hired a lawyer to send letters threatening the victim with criminal complaints including defamation and insult charges" — all while concealing these circumstances to appear on the program.
The post also alleged that A "had a partner from the time she applied for the program through the entire filming period, yet acted as though she were single — a clear act of mockery and deception toward viewers, the cast and the production team." The author further claimed that during the residential filming period, A would spend time early in the morning at the married man's residence before returning to the filming accommodation to continue her schedule, displaying a double life.
The post included a still image captured from closed-circuit television footage that purportedly showed a woman believed to be A and a man believed to be her partner in a physical embrace inside an elevator.
The post spread rapidly across social media immediately after it was published but has since been deleted. The veracity of the claims has not been confirmed.
However, a representative of the program confirmed awareness of the allegations, saying the production team "is currently verifying the details."
jshan@heraldcorp.com