‘Ladyboy’ smear by consultant in feud over divorce
A HOSPITAL consultant waged a poison-pen campaign against her ex-husband accusing him of being gay and branding his new girlfriend a Bangkok ladyboy, a court heard.
Finella Brito-Babapulle sent his family and colleagues a string of hurtful emails and texts alleging Dr Mark Layton had homosexual affairs and cruised notorious pick-up haunts.
She slipped spiteful letters into presents destined for his new partner and even tried to con- vince police to investigate him over the death of his father.
Brito-Babapulle, 57, also acc- used Dr Layton, 57, of cheating her out of £430,000 in their divorce settlement in 2008 when the couple, who have three children, broke up after 20 years.
The blood specialist from Richmond, south-west London, who worked at Ealing Hospital, was convicted last year of harassing Dr Layton, also a consultant haematologist.
Magistrates banned her for life from contacting her ex-husband or his partner and writing about them on websites for two years.
There are no winners here. It is a distressing state of family affairs paraded before us today
The verdict meant she would have to face the General Medical Council and could be struck off and this week Brito-Babapulle went to Southwark Crown Court to try to overturn it.
The court was told of a note she slipped into a present from her children to her ex-husband’s new partner, saying: “I am happy for you both. I just want back the £430,000 you stole from me in the divorce.”
Another message read: “Once a gay. Always a gay.”
In court, the bitter ex-wife launched a bizarre rant to try to convince the judge that her ex- husband concocted the charges to punish her for leaving him.
“He was very unhappy because he did not get one of my two Lon- don houses,” she claimed.
“This is a man who did not buy his wife a wedding ring, but would rather give her a criminal record. He is financially driven and found his new girlfriend on a website called millionaires.com.”
Dismissing Brita-Babapulle’s appeal and ordering her to pay £620 costs, Recorder Alexander Layton said: “There are no winners here. It is a distressing state of family affairs paraded before us today.”