During the heart of Todd Chrisley's fraud trial last year, a former male business partner claimed under oath to have had a secret affair with the reality TV star. Now, Todd and his wife, Julie Chrisley, are calling the man, Mark Braddock, a "liar."
In Todd and Julie Chrisley's 124-page appeal, they say Mark fabricated "everything" to cover up crimes. However, DailyMail.com reports the paperwork makes no mention of the alleged relationship Todd and Mark had in 2005.
"Braddock lied about everything [so] it was not necessary," the Chrisley lawyer told the U.K.-based outlet.
In the summer of 2022, the "Chrisley Knows Best" parents were found guilty of bank fraud and tax evasion. A few months later, Todd was sentenced to 12 years in prison while his wife was sentenced to seven years in prison for the same crimes; both also got another 16 months of probation and were ordered to pay more than $17 million in restitution.
In their appeal, the Chrisleys claim their fourth amendment rights were violated and insist that there was "insufficient evidence of the bank fraud counts" and "procedural errors." They also claim the prosecution "relied exclusively on the testimony of Mark Braddock" — which they say left a lot to be desired.
"Braddock's testimony about Julie was sparse. He testified only that he had discussed with her whether certain documents looked real or not and the need to keep projecting a positive financial picture so Todd could keep getting loans," the Chrisleys allege.
Mark and Todd had a falling out a decade ago, which is when Mark — whom the media has dubbed a "scorned gay lover" — blew the whistle on the reality TV duo. Prior to that, Mark and Todd were allegedly engaged in a consensual affair. While in court, Mark even claimed someone knew about the relationship, noting that he and Todd payed a blackmailer $38,000 to stay quiet.
Todd later addressed the claims on his "Chrisley Confessions" podcast.
"What's insulted me the most is that, out of all these 54 years, for me to finally be accused of being with a man, it would be someone who looked like Mark Braddock," Todd said. "That is the one thing that is the most insulting. To say that I couldn't pull something better than that… There's better to be had by Todd Chrisley than that."
Todd called Mark a "toad" and "someone that looks like a thumb."