Since filing her lawsuit against the Church of Scientology last month, Leah Remini has accused the organization of retaliating against her with a campaign of “continued, aggressive harassment.”
Remini, 53, sued the church and its leader David Miscavige in August for harassment, stalking, defamation and a myriad of other alleged illegal activities. She accused Scientology of using “mob-style operations and attacks” to harass her since she defected from the faith in 2013.
Remini has since amended her lawsuit in Los Angeles County Superior Court and claimed the harassment against her has “escalated to a much greater degree than ever before,” according to Deadline, which shared the revised complaint.
Scientology has not yet responded publicly to Remini’s new allegations. The organization previously called the lawsuit “pure lunacy” and accused Remini of “spreading falsehoods and hate speech.”
“Remini’s complaints are like an anti-Semite complaining about the Jewish Anti-Defamation League for exposing the anti-Semite’s bigotry and propaganda,” the Church wrote. “The Church is not intimidated by Remini’s latest act of blatant harassment and attempt to prevent truthful free speech. If Remini does not believe in free speech, then she should consider emigrating to Russia.”
The new allegations
“Since the filing of my lawsuit, these attacks have escalated dramatically and have now more than ever focused not only on me, but my family members, my friends and professional colleagues,” Remini wrote in her amendment, according to NBC News. “To date, my requests have been dismissed as these abuses continue on a daily basis.”
Remini claimed that since filing the lawsuit against Scientology, “potential fraud” has been flagged on several of her credit cards. The instance of fraud is allegedly “significantly higher” than any fraud previously witnessed by Remini’s financial manager. A tutor hired by Remini — who said they’ve separately been targeted by Scientology promotions — was also hacked, resulting in an apparent US$15,000 (over C$21,100) loss to their business.
Another former Scientologist, who is a friend of Remini’s, also had an unauthorized US$12,000 (more than C$16,100) charge to her business account.
Remini’s friend, co-host and former senior executive of Scientology, Mike Rinder, accused the church of surveilling him in the lawsuit amendment. He claimed he and his wife have been followed by an unknown, suspicious vehicle. Through Remini’s lawyers, Rinder said he is “certain that Scientology is surveilling him to ensure that he does not assist process servers in locating Mr. Miscavige or attempt to serve him personally.”
Rinder left the church in 2007 and has since been outspoken about the alleged physical and mental abuse inflicted upon church members at the hands of Miscavige.
Similarly, another one of Remini’s friends says she was harassed by an unknown vehicle that seemingly attempted to enter the actor’s gated community on Aug. 28. As the driver tried to sneak in, the car allegedly became wedged against a barrier. The lawsuit claims the driver spent nearly 20 minutes “punching numbers into the call box without ever calling any residents in the neighbourhood.” The driver eventually retreated.
Remini’s lawyers alleged on Sept. 3 that “two white men dressed in black” were seen on security camera knocking on her mother’s door at 5 a.m. local time. Remini said she believes the visit is “a threatening message to me.”
Remini’s lawsuit is seeking unspecified damages for the harm she claims the Scientology inflicted on her and her career. Earlier, The King of Queens actor said she initiated the lawsuit to make the church cease its alleged “harassment, defamation, and other unlawful conduct against anyone who Scientology has labeled as an ‘enemy.’”
She joined the Church of Scientology as a child in 1979 but left more than three decades later.
Since separating from Scientology, Remini has consistently criticized the religious organization and Miscavige for serious abuses of power.
In 2016, she released the documentary series Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, which she produced and co-created. The series won three Emmy awards.
Last month, Remini said she was “relieved” to see “dangerous rapist” and noted celebrity Scientologist Danny Masterson sentenced to 30 years to life in prison for two counts of forcible rape.
Remini followed Masterson’s case closely and appeared in court during his trial on at least two occasions.
In her statement shared to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, Remini said Scientologists have long since used their “financial resources, religious protection, and relationships” to withhold justice.
Global News has reached out to the Church of Scientology for comment on Remini’s amendments and accusations.
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