Defamation Case Against Jeff Bezos Over Nude Photo Leak Dismissed In California

A Los Angeles court has dismissed a defamation case against Jeff Bezos.

What Happened: The lawsuit, filed in February by the brother of Jeff Bezos’ romantic partner Lauren Sanchez, was dismissed on Thursday for lack of evidence, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Sanchez claimed the founder of Amazon Inc. AMZN falsely accused him of leaking nude photos of Bezos to the National Enquirer.

In January 2019, the tabloid published a story revealing the extramarital affair between Bezos and Sanchez, who were both married to other people at the time.

The then-parent company of the publication, American Media Inc., said the brother, Michael Sanchez, “provided all of the materials” for their story. Sanchez said he was trying to control the story about his sister, but insisted he didn’t leak the “graphic, nude photos” to the National Enquirer.

Bezos denied that he ever made the accusation against Michael Sanchez, according to court filings cited by the Wall Street Journal.

Why It Matters: Judge John Doyle of Los Angeles County Superior Court closed the case, citing a lack of admissible evidence and stating that most of the information was based on "hearsay."

Michael Sanchez' lawyer Tom Warren said they would appeal.

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