The ongoing dispute between Melania Trump and her former friend, Brazilian model Amanda Ungaro, has escalated into formal legal threats. Ungaro recently challenged the official narrative of how the former First Lady met Donald Trump, alleging that the established story was fabricated to distance the couple from Jeffrey Epstein, as Henry Giardina reported for Queerty. Following an interview on the news channel Narativ with Zev Shalev, Trump issued a demand for a retraction, threatening a defamation lawsuit if the claims are not withdrawn.
The core of the conflict centers on Paolo Zampolli, Ungaro’s ex-husband, who has long been credited with introducing the Trumps in 1998. Ungaro claims this origin story was deliberately constructed to deflect questions about the couple’s social orbit. While the threat of a defamation suit is clearly intended to silence these allegations, legal advocates note that the warning letter relies on vague language rather than establishing exactly why the claims meet the legal standard for defamation.
More importantly, following through on the threat could create an unintended legal trap. Initiating a formal lawsuit would subject all parties to the discovery process, potentially forcing the former First Lady to address inquiries and provide evidence under oath regarding the very associations she is attempting to shut down.
Read Henry Giardina’s complete reporting on the legal warnings, the history between the former friends, and the potential risks of discovery at https://www.queerty.com/melania-threatens-to-sue-ex-bff-over-epstein-claims-but-theres-one-very-inconvenient-problem-20260727/
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