We still have limited information about Memphis Smith and Moknii Hamza’s bitter custody dispute. As 90 Day Fiance: Before The …
Hamza Speaks Out During 90 Day Fiance Custody Battle with Memphis Smith was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip .
Early this year, Memphis Smith and Moknii Hamza broke up. Despite being one of the most put-together couples on the …
Memphis Smith and Hamza Are Allegedly in the Midst of a Bitter Custody Dispute was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip .
On the 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days Tell All, Mike Berk and Ximena Morales were back together. Sort …
Ximena Morales: Who is Her Latest Boyfriend After Mike Berk? was originally published on The Hollywood Gossip .
One of the most surprising 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days Season 5 couples were Ben Rathbun and Mahogany Roca.
First, viewers were astonished to see that Mahogany was real. The catfishing story was forgotten in the place of Ben’s escalating creepiness.
Ben blamed relationship troubles on 90 Day Fiance … and generally on everything but himself. Many hoped that they were over.
Now, Mahogany is hinting that they are together. But why?
Over Memorial Day Weekend, Mahogany Roca shared this photo of her with Ben Rathbun, seemingly dressed up for a dinner date.
It is possible that this slightly out-of-focus photo is a throwback.
But she didn’t label it as such — she just used a lot of hashtags, many related to the franchise, and an emoji depicting clinking glasses.
“You still with Ben???” asked a stunned commenter.
“Are they seeing each other again?” another queried, commenting: “Lord have mercy.”
A different commenter described Ben: “A man acting like a little boy trying to be with a young girl.”
Now, hang on a moment.
During their season, when Ben met up with Mahogany, he was surprised to learn that the woman he saw as his future wife didn’t see him as her future husband.
Instead, she characterized him as being more of a “friend,” something that took him a while to accept.
In fact, as the season unfolded, Mahogany began to even question their status as “friends.”
Ben was rude, embarrassing her in front of her parents by not showing up to breakfast because he resented her not responding to his texts.
Speaking of his texts, he sent her what is frankly an insane amount of stuff, overwhelming her with what he admitted was about “ten pages” worth of words. Ridiculous.
Ben refused to accept the blame for any of the real issues with him and Mahogany — or even with his ex-wife or his former fiancee.
Mahogany called him out on that and on other things.
Finally, he ended up pursuing her into and then out of a car. She was done. Enough was enough.
But nearly a year later, when their season was finally airing, people spotted and photographed them together at a mall in Lima, Peru.
There were no cameras on them at the time (though the cast members can and do go places off camera during filming).
It’s possible that they were back together, either for the show or because of their own emotional entanglement.
That was months ago, however.
So while it’s possible that they’re still together, it’s also possible that they’re broken up.
And until this photo, people had an easy time telling themselves that Ben was working on his next infatuation while Mahogany was living her life as before.
But this pic could still be misleading, since we do not know the context or when it was taken.
Some speculate that Mahogany shared the photo for her own reasons, to keep people guessing.
Whether it’s attention for her internet brand or to string people along until a (potential) new season with the two of them airs … that is anyone’s guess.
In January of 2021, we reported on the arrest of Douglas “DJ Doug” Wooten, who appeared on 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days as part of Angela Deem’s story.
The venue coordinator is not the only associate of Angela’s to appear on the show before going to trial for serious crimes.
But he was arrested for murder following a deadly home invasion.
Wooten has now entered his plea, receiving a stiff sentence.
Douglas “DJ Doug Wooten” no longer appears on 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days episodes — as in, not even on the old episodes.
His scenes have been scrubbed from Season 3 on Discovery Plus.
That is because he was part of a deadly home invasion on January 4, 2021.
39-year-old Doug took part in the crime, along with 18-year-old Denver Wooten, 39-year-old kegan Bennett, and 32-year-old Verlyttia Ivory.
It is assumed (and in some cases reported) that Denver is Doug’s son and that Verlyttia was his girlfriend at the time, but we don’t really know.
What we do know is that Doug reportedly had a 9 mm pistol, Denver had a.38 caliber revolver, and Kegan was carrying a 410 daliber shotgun.
The home that was invaded belongs to Brittany Martinez.
During the home in vasion, 54-year-old Georgia resident Marcos Ramirez was shot and killed.
Court documents, obtained by Starcasm, do not make it clear how many times Marcos was shot or if Doug was the only shooter.
Doug was charged with three counts of felony murder, along with armed robbery, home invasion, aggravated assault, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
Despite there being only one murder victim, the death of Marcos during the commission of other felonies means that the felony murder rule applies, thus the multiple charges.
This month, nearly a year and a half after the deadly home invasion, Douglas Wooten pleaded guilty to felony murder.
This May 2 plea deal meant that the prosecutor agreed to not pursue the other charges.
Douglas was sentenced to life in prison, with the possibility of parole.
Per Georgia state guidelines, he may become eligible for parole after serving 30 years.
Douglas was arrested only days after the murder, and has been credited with time served since January 7 of 2021.
On January 7 of 2051, he may begin to become eligible for parole.
Eligibility for parole and being granted it are very different things, however.
It appears that Kegan took a similar plea deal.
Meanwhile, Denver and Verlyttia’s cases are still works in progress.
All told, it is a grim story. Brittany had a gun put to her head and likely watched as Marcos was shot and killed. Nothing can fix that.
As we noted, Doug is not the only person from Angela’s storyline to have ended up sentenced to prison for a heinous crime.
Her adult daughter, Scottie Deem, appeared during Angela’s first season … and was later sentenced to prison for sex crimes against children.
Scottie was actually released in early 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, even while people whose crimes had no victims died behind bars due to the virus.
It has been a hot minute since Ash Naeck’s romance with Avery Warner.
90 Day Fiance fans pretty much agree that they both dodged a bullet, albeit for different reasons.
Since then, Ash has moved on, finding love again with girlfriend Tina Sardellis.
The two have a lot in common — and guess who’s pregnant now?
This week, Ash Naeck took to Instagram to share some very happy news.
Alongside a photo in which he is kissing the obvious belly bump of Tina Sardellis, the motivational speaker included a caption:
“To see the fam growing,” he began. “Life sure never gets boring.”
“Exciting times ahead,” Ash then expressed eagerly.
Ash also shared a look at a sonogram, a rattle, some baby booties, and of course a graphic onesie.
The onesie reads: “Baby Naeck Sardellis coming October 2022.”
Tina also shared the happy news with her own fans and followers.
“There is a bun in the oven,” she announced excitedly.
Congratulations to them both!
Tina took things even further, sharing the news on her business page … using phrasing that’s exactly what you’d expect.
“Hello beautiful souls! You may have noticed that I’ve been super quiet on socials lately,” she began. “I’ve been very yin.”
Yin of course is part of the Taiji, an iconic Daoist symbol. Yin is more passive and nurturing in contrast with yang, which is active and assertive.
Tina explained that she has been “nurturing and nourishing myself for the expected coming of our precious little bubba.”
She continued: “My darling Ash @themindbodycoach and I, have kept a little surprise and we are so excited to share our happy news with you.”
Tina then added the tags: “#baby #pregnancy #mother #motherofcreation #birthing #healer #activator #love #sacredunion #family”
This will be Ash’s second child.
90 Day Fiance viewers will recall seeing his son, Taj, on the show.
Ash was anxious at the idea that he might have to leave Taj, even temporarily, if he had gone to America with Avery Warner.
Tina also seems to be a parent, as social media indicates that she ahs three daughters, ranging from a 12-year-old to a 17-year-old.
There are also hints that Tina was recently married and divorced, given a semi-recent name change.
In addition to dating, Ash and Tina are partners in a business — one promoting the same brand of spiritualism that they both espouse separately.
Ash made viewers uneasy during his debut on Before The 90 Days, and we don’t just mean the odd (and potentially body-shaming) comments about his intense stares.
The vibe of his motivational presentations put some people off — that kind of intensity is a lot to process, which is why not everyone would even consider going to such a seminar.
At times, Ash also struck some as misogynistic, which is never a good look.
That said, with everything that we now know, he was not the worse partner — that would be Avery.
She has gone on to make some pretty abhorrent social media posts, condemning Black Lives Matter and coming across like a Qanon quack.
Avery turned out to be a pretty gross person. We hope that Ash’s new lady love is much better.
The 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days Season 5 Tell All filmed in January of this year.
At that time, Memphis and Hamza were still together.
A lot can change over the course of several months.
After weeks of intense rumors, Memphis has confirmed her split from Hamza — identifying herself as a “single mom” yet again.
Memphis Smith, who registered to vote last year under the name Memphis Chardell-Arden Mokni, posted a new video.
In the Instagram post, Memphis is pumping breast milk.
It is neither feasible nor fair to expect a baby to be fed directly every time; breast milk can be pumped, stored, and then bottle-fed to babies.
Memphis, a working mom, is wearing a positive attitude during the video.
It is so important to normalize breastfeeding.
Some past generations were so uptight about breastfeeding that they demanded that nursing mothers hide themselves while feeding their babies. Society is thankfully moving forward.
“LET’S TALK ABOUT IT!!” Memphis captioned her fun-spirited video.
“Ladies share your tips with one another! Open Forum!” she wrote, cautioning commenters: “NO NEGATIVITY or you will be BLOCKED”
Memphis added: “Breastfeeding/breast pumping mamas!! It doesn’t STOP because we work, it doesn’t STOP so we can sleep and it definitely doesn’t STOP so we can play!”
Memphis’ tags, however, were what really grabbed people’s attention.
“#breastfeeding #breastfeedingmom #breastfeedingjourney #breastfeedingworkingmom #pumpingmom #breastpumping,” she tagged.
Memphis continued: “#allmoms #newmomlife #singlemomlife #healthyhabits #breastfeedingawareness #postpartum.”
Note the fourth-to-last tag, “singlemomlife.”
At first, we wondered if she had simply been making frequent use of this tag on her posts.
Instead, we found that while tags like “#postpartum” appeared on numerous Instagram captions, her references to being a “single mom” seem to be new.
It’s still possible that Memphis is speaking “to” single moms and not “as” a single mom.
But in conjunction with everything else that has come out about her and Hamza lately, that seems unlikely.
It might fly if production gives her an angry call about her NDA, but common sense says that she and Hamza are done.
A couple of months ago, Memphis suddenly purged every pic of Hamza from her Instagram.
Sometimes, it’s an NDA thing, but usually — especially when viewers know that a couple is together — it’s a better indicator of a breakup.
Even worse, Memphis and Hamza unfollowed each other. That’s never a good sign for a marriage.
On March 13, Memphis dropped another major hint that she and Hamza were through.
“Never love a man so much that you ignore the truth about him,” read a quote that she shared.
That seemed a little too on-the-nose to be a general piece of wisdom.
Hamza recently shared that he was hanging out in Chicago — not exactly Memphis’ native Michigan.
He also did not appear to be wearing a wedding ring, which further stirred up suspicions that things are really, truly over.
We don’t know what it’s all about, though leaked DMs between Memphis and Hamza’s sister Rawia suggest that jealousy over Memphis’ ex may be a factor.
One of the biggest unanswered questions after the 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days Tell All was about Memphis and Hamza.
We know that they married. We know that Hamza came to Michigan. We know that Memphis gave birth to their baby.
Beyond that, all that we have seen are a lot of hints about what is going on, and none of it is good.
As Memphis’ sister-in-law leakes alleged messages back and forth, Memphis gave a tearful public reply begging for kindness.
Memphis Smith and Moknii Hamza getting together does not mean happily ever after — the spinoff or the actual, you know, happiness.
Citing feeling unwell, Memphis ducked out of the Tell All.
While it’s suspected that they filmed for something or another, the Tell All stunt was not planned, because Hamza’s family ended up not being part of it.
Over the weekend, Rawia — Hamza’s sister, a fan-favorite for the franchise — shared and deleted alleged messages with Memphis.
Rawia appeared to be echoing her brother’s concerns bout Memphis’ ex-husband, Justin Sandoval, who is the father of her kids.
“Sister, Hamza does not mind to speak with [sic] your ex-husband but he [feels] jealous when you go alone to his house alone,” Rawia wrote.
Memphis’ frustration was palpable despite the politeness of her reply.
“Justin is not here, he is at work and when he gets here I will be leaving,” Memphis explained. “I just can’t leave the children alone.”
She reminded Rawia that without Justin, she could not have made the trip to Tunisia to see and marry Hamza.
“He [understands] your situation,” Rawia replied, “but he can’t hide his [feelings] that he [feels] jealous when you be [sic] in your ex-husband house.”
“Well, he does not need to be with me then,” Memphis replied bluntly.
“Because he knows Justin is in the kids’ life and right now, he is helping me out greatly,” she added. “I am done arguing.”
Rawia continued in her Instagram stories, writing: “I think it’s time to talk about the truth and what my brother went through.”
She added: “Trying to make someone look bad and lying to them is inhumane.”
“Every word I say I have proof,” Rawia claimed.
“The first thing I will explain is why Hamza wants to MOVE with his wife and the kids to another city, and you can find out the answer,” Rawia hinted.
“I just want you to expose other people’s lies,” Rawia expressed. “You are just trying to show your good side (it doesn’t exist) but your reality is worse.”
Rawia accused: “You want to play the victim but you are a cheat and your mask will fall soon.”
Hamza posted his own very vague post, seemingly in response to the exchange.
“When a person can no longer control you, they will try to control how [others] see you,” he wrote.
“These lies will feel unfair, but stay above it,” Hamza continued, “trusting that other people will eventually see the truth just like you did.”
Memphis also posted a tearful meltdown, telling her detractors that they do not know what they are talking about and should stop insulting her.
She is likely still under NDA and cannot get into any specific to defend herself, so is stuck in a position where she has to be vague.
This is a painful position, and a lot of innuendos being bandied about by those involved cannot be helpful for this family.
Earlier this month, disgraced former 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days star Geoffrey Paschel’s retrial motion was delayed.
About six months ago, he was convicted for a brutal domestic assault and kidnapping, but continues to fight his 18-year sentence.
For reasons known only to her, Varya Malina has remained his steadfast and vocal supporter through all of this.
Varya is once again trying to elicit sympathy for Geoffrey, likening him to an “animal in a cage” as he begins to serve his sentence.
Just months into Geoffrey Paschel’s 18-year sentence, Varya Malina says that visiting him behind bars is a miserable experience.
She wrote on Instagram: “I was supposed to life his spirits up.”
“But,” Varya continued, “he was the one who cheered me up.”
“The hardest thing I’ve ever seen in my life is my beloved one, who is like an animal in a cage,” Varya expressed.
“And I can’t do anything to help him right at the moment,” she complained.
“It feels miserable, the lowest low,” Varya wrote, “and I’m so emotionally exhausted.”
Varya expressed shock — in a negative way — when Geoffrey was sentenced to nearly two decades behind bars.
While many of those of us who were following the case were also surprised, it was a pleasant one — a rare case of a domestic abuser being held accountable.
In contrast, Varya appears to believe that Geoffrey is innocent, and has expressed unwavering confidence that the whole thing will be overturned on appeal.
Fortunately, so far, Varya has been as wrong about Geoffrey’s success in court as she is about his character.
Last week, she updated followers, revealing that his retrial motion hearing has been delayed.
Even when the hearing takes place in late May, not even Varya expects a retrial to be granted — but it’s just the first step on the appeals process.
“But if you think he’s about to give up, you are so wrong,” Varya threatened on Instagram.
“Even in these horrible circumstances,” she described, “he was the same goofball I fell in love with.”
Many manipulators know exactly how to present themselves to continue to get undeserved sympathy and support from their marks.
“The first visitation was so emotionally exhausting, but it was worth every minute nonetheless,” Varya appraised.
“We both had that same feeling as at the airport in Russia, when we met for the first time,” she characterized.
Varya described: “I jumped and cried as he smiled and joked about hugging me like my father.”
“I planned to go live [on Instagram] right after the visitation but couldn’t find any energy to share it with you,” Varya added apologetically.
“I felt that the best thing for my mental health,” she explained, “was to hide to some invisible place where no one can see or hear me and vice versa.”
Varya also shared that she would be returning to visit Geoffrey again.
Just months before Geoffrey flew to Russia to meet Varya for the first time, he was engaged to a different woman — Kristen Wilson.
In June of 2019, he attacked her in her home, brutally beating her and then holding her captive, preventing her from leaving or calling 9-1-1.
Kristen managed to escape, seeking refuge at a neighbor’s, where she was able to contact authorities to treat her injuries and to arrest the monster who had done this to her.
Geoffrey went on to film with Varya (and Mary) before prosecutors built their case enough to issue the full charges against him.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the trial did not take place until October of 2021, when he was found guilty.
Between another ex’s haunting testimony and the attempt to contact Kristen to induce her to plead for leniency, Geoffrey received a well-deserved 18 year sentence.
90 Day Fiance has introduced viewers to manipulators, liars, creeps, and worse over the years.
Even so, the franchise would be hard pressed to cast someone worse than Geoffrey Paschel, even if they tried.
Following his conviction for kidnapping and assault, Geoffrey was sentenced to 18 years in prison.
Geoffrey began his appeals process with a motion for a retrial … and the hearing has just gotten a major delay.
Varya Malina — who for some twisted reason seems to still love him — has explained much of this to her followers.
Geoffrey’s motion for a retrial is not likely to succeed, and he knows it.
The motion is more of a formality before his attorneys launch numerous appeals over the next few years.
However, the court has issued a continuance on the motion for a retrial.
“I got some news from the lawyer,” Varya reported to her followers on Instagram this week.
“The motion for the new trial was delayed for a variety of reasons,” she shared, “which nobody had time to explain.”
“And I doubt that cared,” Varya added, indicating that she does not care why the motion was continued.
“It was delayed for a date,” she went on. “Nobody knows which date. It’s all such a stupid circus.”
However, Starcasm reports that the delay is until May 26 — less than a month and a half from now.
Technically, there is a chance that Geoffrey could be awarded a new trial at the hearting late next month.
If so, it would likely stem from an objection on his attorney’s behalf that the court, after contemplation, overruled.
The reason was that the victim’s testimony included descriptions of Geoffrey’s past abuse as well as on the night in question.
Geoffrey’s defense attorney argued that Tennessee law requires that he be notified before prior bad acts are brought up.
The court decided that the victim’s testimony in court was not sufficient to interfere with due process.
Fortunately, the motion for a retrial is considered a long-shot at best.
Kristen Wilson, Geoffrey’s ex-fiancee whom he savagely beat and held against her will in June of 2019, only described what she had experienced.
While Geoffrey has a long list of exes accusing him of the same monstrous violence, Kristen did not refer to them while on the stand.
However, during Geoffrey’s sentencing hearing, one of his ex-wives testified in order to shed light upon his brutal history.
This was not Geoffrey’s first accusation of domestic violence or his first conviction, but it was his first conviction for domestic violence charges.
Only a small fraction of abusers are ever even charged with a crime, let alone sentenced to any substantial prison time.
Geoffrey’s sentencing is a rare, hope-inspiring exception, brought on by the scale of his violence, the courage of the woman who pressed charges against him, and the wisdom of the court.
It is often difficult to celebrate someone being in prison, because there are so many injustices regarding who is sent to prison and how they are treated.
Geoffrey’s unrepentant brutality, and his attempt to use his children to manipulate the victim into pushing for leniency, make him a bit of a special case.
We can all sleep a little easier knowing that he’s behind bars now, and for nearly two decades to come. Who knows how many women this will save.
So much went down at a memorably messy 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days Tell All.
Season 5 is over, and we know that at least some of these couples will return to the franchise.
But … some major questions are still unresolved.
Fans across social media are abuzz with queries, and we’ve compiled some of the most frequently asked questions … and may be able to help with answers.
Gino allegedly slid into Jessica’s DMs. Memphis straight up disappeared.
Mahogany’s fake apartment wasn’t explained. Did Johnny follow through on his flight plans?
And why was the entire cast Team Mike when viewers are much more divided over him?
During Part 1 of the Tell All, Shaun Robinson asked Gino if he had messaged anyone else from the cast.
She — and Jasmine — gave him every opportunity to confess, but when Gino is under pressure, he denies everything, no matter how transparent the lie.
Naturally, the Tell All shared DMs showing Gino messaging Ben’s friend, Jessica, who quickly shut down any possible flirtation.
Though the DMs shown clearly imply that Gino is the one reaching out, Gino claimed at the Tell All that Jessica had reached out first.
That seems … unlikely, for a host of reasons.
Regardless, this led to open feuding between Jasmine and Jessica, with the former lashing out at the latter due to insecurities.
Gino claimed to have deleted his DMs and to therefore be unable to prove his ridiculous claim.
Jessica offered to show her DMs to the camera, but viewers didn’t see that.
Maybe she did, and the show aired their edited screenshot (above) instead of trying to make us read a screen-via-screen-via-screen set of DMs.
Up next, what is going on with Memphis?
Memphis and Hamza were easily the best-looking couple at the Tell All, and the only ones who were physically on stage together.
They are married, have welcomed a child together, and seem to have everything going for them.
But during the Tell All, Memphis abruptly got up and left, explaining that she was sick.
Hamza remained behind at the request of production, but viewers didn’t hear from Memphis.
We all know that they likely filmed for another season already, so was this planned to avoid spoilers … or something else?
Rawia, Hamza’s sister (and a fan favorite), took to Instagram to share a number of things, vaguely implying that something is up with Memphis.
She also shared that she and her mother, Hayet, had been prepared to participate in the Tell All, only to not be called upon after Memphis left. What happened?
Maybe Memphis really was sick (that’s the most likely explanation). Or maybe there are things that no one is ready to discuss just yet.
There was so much that was covered about Ben and Mahogany.
We saw scenes from their season, we saw never-before-shown footage (and Mahogany feeling betrayed by it).
Viewers were even treated to Jessica, Ben’s friend, telling him exactly what she now thinks of him.
Jessica called Mahogany a “victim” and Jasmine said that Ben gave off a “pervert vibe.”
But there are still questions about Mahogany … and that super fake looking apartment.
What was the deal with the most staged, transparently not-hers apartment that we’ve ever seen?
It really wasn’t addressed enough on the show, and even less so on the Tell All.
Now, maybe Ben and Mahogany did go into it but their answers didn’t fit on the Tell All.
Or maybe Ben’s interview answer, given earlier this year, was meant to be enough.
Earlier this year, as the season aired, Ben tried to justify the apartment.
He claimed that Mahogany really did live there for a while.
Maybe he was trying to cover for her. Maybe he’s even more gullible than viewers thought. It’s hard to say.
Ella and Johnny had an uncomfortable season, with a lot of tears and zero payoff — because they never got to meet up.
At the Tell All, Johnny promised that he was coming in February, and had already purchased his ticket.
The Tell All was filmed in January of this year, however, one month ahead of that trip.
Ella and Johnny cannot see the future, and neither can Shaun Robinson, so none of them at the time knew where things are headed.
There have been no photos of the two together shared on Instagram.
That could be due to the NDA for Season 5 … or even beyond that.
Ella Johnson will return to the franchise on 90 Day Diaries.
Perhaps we will get to see her and Johnny meet up in person. Perhaps not.
We’d love to have seen her on another season of a more prominent spinoff, but maybe production wasn’t willing to take the chance that Johnny would back out again.
A lot of viewers are totally weirded out over how universally Team Mike the cast was.
Sure, earlier this season, it seemed like Ximena was just disgusted by him but not breaking things off because of the benefits of dating him.
But even those of us who didn’t see Mike’s disgusting racist social media history saw an ugly side of him on screen.
Mike swore at Ximena, insulting her and insulting her family.
He also strongly gave off the vibe that he felt that he could “buy” Ximena and her love, at one point even refusing to leave her home because he paid the rent.
No amount of money gives you ownership of a person, and a gift is just that — a gift, not a conditional tool to hold over someone’s head. Mike was being gross.
It’s possible that Mike’s castmates had only seen certain sides of their conflicts, because this was filmed in January.
Clearly, they were given footage from later in the season to watch, but it must have been a highlight reel — not a dozen or so hours.
If that’s the case, then production picked those edits to share because they wanted the cast to be Team Mike, possibly to build up hype for his and Ximena’s next season.
On the 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days Season 5 Tell All, Ben and Mahogany were in the hotseat.
Castmates put Ben on blast, especially after he picked at their relationships.
One of Ben’s own friends called him out, labeling Mahogany as a “victim” and Ben as a “narcissist.”
After all of that, Ben says that the only thing threatening to ruin things with Mahogany is the show itself.
Ben Rathbun started Season 5 looking like a gullible fool, but that’s not how most viewers see him how.
We all watched as he flew down to Peru against Mahogany Roca’s wishes, consistantly pushing past her boundaries.
While there are lingering questions about her choices, nothing compares to watching Ben chase her into and then out of a vehicle.
Though things ended in that eye-catching way during their season, things were better on the Tell All.
Addressing their castmates, Mahogany owned up to her lie about her age.
She (very wisely) explained how it’s smarter to not share exact details about her age and her life with a brand new internet “friend.”
Mahogany also explained why she refused to video chat with Ben.
Defending herself to Ben’s friend Jessica, she explained that Ben had asked if she wanted to chat “like a date,” so she declined.
That is not the story that Ben had told people. It seemed almost like he wanted people to view her as dishonest.
Jasmine chimed in, telling Ben what countless viewers had observed.
Between the 30-year age gap and Ben’s refusal to honor Mahogany’s boundaries and his endless pursuit of her … it was creepy.
What Jasmine called a “pervert vibe,” others had already noted as creepy behavior.
Ben and Mahogany seemed to be in a “better” place, and the show played ample footage that Ben had recorded without production present.
Of course, Mahogany expressed a feeling of betrayal, admitting that she hadn’t realized that Ben would share all of this with the show.
That really put a sour lining on their otherwise sweet moments.
Then Jessica, formerly a critic (or skeptic) of Mahogany’s, tuning in to the Tell All and adjusting her view when presented with new information.
Jessica apologized to Mahogany, admitting that she now sees her as a “victim” not as a scammer.
She also put Ben on blast, labeling him a narcissist.
Following the Tell All, Ben took to Instagram to praise Mahogany for being “incredibly wise” for not blindly trusting him before they met.
“Yes, she wanted to meet me, and she loved me, but she rightly questioned my intentions when I came with an entire TV show to meet her for the first time,” he explained.
Ben added that she was not seeking attention or fame by appearing on the show.
“I made this impossible by convincing her to be on this show,” Ben said of her desire to get to know him.
“Was this all a mistake? It certainly damaged our relationship,” he reflected.
Ben wrote that a “lot has happened off-camera” and asked fans to not judge them too harshly, because they don’t have all of the information.
During the 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days Season 5 Tell All Part 2, all eyes turned to Ella Johnson.
Ella’s castmates slammed her, taking a harsher view of her alleged “cheating” than Johnny himself did.
After the Tell All aired, Ella revealed that she had not really cheated, confirming what some fans had wondered.
She also announced that viewers of the franchise will see her and Johnny again.
Ella Johnson straight up did not have a great time at the Tell All special, though she did affirm that it was worth it.
Several castmates arrived ready to beef with her, accusing her of cheating on Johnny, her long-distance boyfriend.
This stemmed from Ella’s on-screen confession to Johnny during the season.
After two years of constant delays and setbacks, Ella had told Johnny that further delays would mean something needing to change — an open relationship.
During a painful, tearful moment, Ella told Johnny that a friend had come over, and that the two had been intimate.
Johnny was hurt by this revelation, and some of her castmates called her out on the Tell All stage.
Ella and Johnny are still together, the couple reported at the Tell All.
She explained her hookup with the friend.
Not only was she uncertain that Johnny would ever actually come see her, but her love language is touch, and she needed physical affection.
Of course, Ella was in a room full of people who had been in long-distance relationships, some of whom still were (albeit, they had all met at least once).
Memphis suggested that perhaps Ella should not be in a long-distance relationship.
Sometimes, LDRs lead to extended periods without contact. People should be prepared for that going in.
Ella pointed out that she had owned up to her mistake.
She hadn’t tried to hide it from Johnny, and had tearfully confessed it to him over video chat, knowing that she was risking the relationship.
But Kimberly, who had come to the Tell All eager to call out Ella, did just that.
Declaring that she had no respect for Ella after the incident, Kimberly said that there’s no place for cheating in long-distance relationships.
(Weird that she specified “long distance” … are there relationships where cheating is more appropriate than others? Maybe?)
Ella, who notably had a bone to pick primarily with other women on the cast (and Ben only after he insulted her), said that her heart broke for Johnny.
Johnny expressed how he wished that he had never heard this news.
He did affirm at the Tell All that this doesn’t mean that he wanted Ella to lie to him, either.
But yes, he was hurt.
Jasmine possibly missed what Ella meant when she described her love language being “touch.”
Jasmine recommended “sexy time,” touching herself, or the use of sex toys (advice that Usman echoed).
A colorful, entertaining moment … but needing an orgasm and needing physical affection are not always the same thing.
Jasmine also asked a question that had been brought up by some fans.
Had Ella cheated … or had she told Johnny that she had cheated in order to make him jealous and encourage him to stop delaying his trip?
As much as Ella might have liked to take back the hookup, she had really slept with her friend.
Shaun spoke to Johnny, who confirmed that he was coming in “one month” — in February — and had bought the ticket.
This set the timeline for the Tell All being filmed in January.
Shaun then asked Ella if there had been any other indescretions since her hookup with her friend. Ella said no.
As it turned out, Ella might have been alone on her birthday had a friend not come to see her.
This friend, whom she had met on a dating site some time in the past, actually took a flight to visit her.
What’s more is that he stayed the night — in the guest bedroom.
Platonic houseguests are an extremely normal thing for most Americans, particularly those who are younger.
Someone flying in to town for one night, after meeting up on a dating site … is a little odd, and Johnny echoed that sentiment.
However, whatever the friend’s intentions, Ella explained that nothing untoward had happened.
Ella called up Johnny to ask how things were.
He affirmed that he did not blame her for how uncomfortable the Tell All was.
They are still together, and despite her struggles on stage, Ella shared at the end that she did not regret filming her season.
After Part 2 of the Tell All ended, Ella took to Instagram to speak up.
“I was a little disappointed in the tell all cast,” she admitted.
“But,” Ella pointed out, “I respected everyone and did not lash out.”
“However, I was attacked and unable to state that Johnny and I were in an open relationship,” Ella revealed.
She continued: “Second off we had never even meet so you can be upset and think I cheated. I don’t believe I did and neither did he.”
“Another tid bit the only person’s opinion that matters to me is Johnny,” Ella concluded. “If you want to follow us our journey will continue on 90 Day Diaries. Feel free to tune in.”
90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days Season 5 has officially and formally come to an end.
Part 2 of the Tell All special aired on Sunday, picking up right where the Tell All Part 1 left off — with Kimberly emotionally devasted by Usman.
Kimberly receives comfort and sympathy while Usman defends his call to Zara.
Up next, we get into the only couple who couldn’t meet up face-to-face, Ella and Johnny.
Ella defends having slept with a friend, and Johnny reveals that he has a ticket and is coming to see her — for real, this time.
Ben and Mahogany’s conversation ends up changing the mind of one of his closest friends, who now considers Mahogany a “victim.”
The main event is Mike and Ximena, however, and everyone on stage is Team Mike.
Oh yes, they’re back together, and she’s giving him another chance … but Ximena says plainly that she’s not in love with him.
Even during Season 5 of 90 Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days, Ella got flack from fans.
During one painful moment, she confessed to Johnny that she had slept with a friend.
Ella was in tears, Johnny was hurt, and fans were fuming at Ella and calling her out.
At the Tell All, it was Ella’s castmates’ turn to excoriate her. Some also had some, ahem, advice.
Through this sneak peek clip for Part 2 of the Tell All special, we see Ella Johnson speak up for herself.
“I need it to be known,” she shared, that “my love language is touch.”
“And,” Ella pointed out, “two years is a really long time to have to wait.”
Ella isn’t wrong, and we should all keep in mind that Ella and Johnny didn’t set out to be apart for this long.
If it weren’t for the COVID-19 pandemic, Johnny would either have already come to see her in Idaho … or possibly would have found other excuses.
(We’re not accusing Johnny of anything, but after all of these delays, everyone has to consider the possibilities)
However, Ella is not the only one on stage who was in a long-distance relationship (since they all were).
“Then you shouldn’t be in a long-distance relationship if you’re that vulnerable,” Memphis explains.
“And,” she suggests, “don’t put yourself in that situation.”
“Me and [Hamza], you know, we have been away from each other for a long time, just like you,” Memphis notes.
“You have to do little things like the sexy time stuff to try to like keep that going,” she advises.
Memphis says that it’s important to keep the romance alive “because temptation is a you-know-what.”
Ella explains that there was more going on than just a moment of “temptation,” however.
“You know, for me, I didn’t think that he would come,” she admitted.
“And so,” Ella explained, “I thought it was over.”
“And like yeah, I know I f–ked up, I f–king owned it,” Ella noted, referring to her honest confession.
“Did I not f–king own it?” she asked, getting understandably defensive, affirming: “I owned it.”
Though her honesty is certainly a step up above some of her castmates, nobody was lining up to give Ella a medal, either.
“You’re so defensive right now,” Kimberly Menzies observed.
“But let me tell you something, okay?” she said. “If you’re in an international relationship, you don’t cheat.”
We are desperately curious to hear why Kimberly specified the “international” part, but she wasn’t done.
“I have zero respect for you for that,” Kimberly stated. She has had a beef with Ella since she arrived.
“And you can sit up here and say you have excuses all day,” she went on.
Kimberly continued: “You hurt that man and when I saw that on camera it broke my heart.”
“I’m a super sexual person,” Jasmine Pineda then affirmed. “I love sex.”
She recalled: “The first time I met Gino was after nine months.”
“And,” Jasmine characterized, “I was dying every single day to have sex with him.”
“If you’re, like, touch is so important to you,” Jasmine asked, “why are you gonna be in a long-distance relationship?”
She observed: “Like, I can see that Johnny is actually, like, really hurt.”
“Hey,” Jasmine suggested, “there’s so many other things that Memphis mentioned.”
Jasmine had some advice of her own: “Touch yourself. Use plastic.”
She then announced: “I use dildos, you know?”
“Buy a toy!” Usman Umar then chimed in, recommending the purchase of sex toys. “Buy toys!”
We heard a lot about Gino and Jasmine’s not-so-spicy sex life on Part 1 of the 90 Day Day Fiance: Before The 90 Days Tell All.
Things may be cool in the sheets, but on Part 2, we’ll see Gino in the hot seat for leaking Jasmine’s nudes.
Remember how he first denied it altogether, then apologized by saying that it was a stupid mistake, an error in judgment?
Now he’s walking that back, claiming that it was not a mistake, but an accident. Nobody’s buying it.
In this sneak peek clip, Gino Palazzolo presents his new recollection of events on the Tell All stage.
“It wasn’t nude pictures, plural,” he clarifies, insisting that it was only one topless photo.
Several people, including Mike Berk, are visibly astonished at this claim … which is contrary to what Jasmine is saying.
“So, this happened a couple of months after I met Jasmine,” Gino tells his castmates.
He says that this was “because I was excited about meeting Jasmine.”
In the understatement of the week, Gino reminds everyone: “Now my ex, she rubbed me the wrong way when we broke up.”
“And she was saying a lot of stuff to me about her new boyfriend and stuff,” Gino recalls.
“So, what this was was my immaturity,” he acknowledges.
“And trying to get back at her,” Gino continues, summarizing his motive: “Revenge.”
“Now what happened was, I selected a group of pictures on my phone,” Gino claims.
“And one of the pictures I accidentally sent,” he insists, “was a topless photo.”
This could potentially happen, yes, but it’s irresponsible with someone else’s photo, it’s messy to send anything like this to your ex, and it’s very different than past versions of the story.
“And it was one time, and it was meant to be a one-time thing only,” Gino repeats firmly.
The fact that he says it like this … really makes a lot of people wonder what else he’s hiding.
“But,” he claims, “I didn’t send a nude photo on purpose to her.”
“I mean, Gino, you sent at different times three different topless pictures,” Jasmine cites during the same clip.
“No, no. This was one time only,” Gino claims.
“There were three different pictures,” Jasmine reiterates, adding that Gino accompanied each of these photos with text messages.
If you select a bunch of photos and send them en masse, they don’t arrive with text messages between each pic.
(Don’t text mass photos like that — even if it’s your family vacation pics, it’s such a clumsy way to share things unless someone wants them sent that way)
If there were lines of text between each pic, that means that the photos were selected and sent individually … which is not what Gino is claiming.
“So, you’re telling me, Gino, that you made the same mistake three different times by texting three different texts?” Jasmine summarizes.
Shaun Robinson then jumps in, trying to see if Gino is willing to directly call Jasmine is lying instead of just imply it with his denials.
Gino does that thing where he seems to shrink in on himself nervously, but just repeats the same claim again and again.
“And the problem is, Shaun, he never showed me his texts. I never saw it from Gino’s cell phone,” Jasmine laments.
Ella and Mike ask the obvious: if Gino is innocent, why didn’t he exonerate himself by showing Jasmine his original messages, from his phone?
“He deleted it scared, Ella,” Jasmine explains, disappointment in her voice.
