Not here for it. Tom Sandoval’s apology statement was met with plenty of criticism from his Vanderpump Rules costars including Lala Kent, Katie Maloney and James Kennedy.
The reality stars were quick to take to social media after Sandoval broke his silence about the drama.
“S*ndoval. Shut up. Employees, abort mission,” Kent, 32, wrote via Instagram Stories on Saturday, March 4, alongside the restaurant owner’s statement. “Where’s Ariana’s apology in this? It’s called narcissism … & and it’s terrifying.”
Meanwhile, Maloney, 36, came to Ariana Madix‘s defense, adding on her Instagram, “Where’s the mention of hurting Ariana?! No apologies to her?”
Kennedy, 31, for his part, weighed in on the drama in a since-deleted post. “Where’s Ariana Madix mentioned? Make sure y’all unfollow this clown RIGHT NOW GO,” he captioned a screenshot of Sandoval’s statement via Instagram.
The response came hours after the TomTom cofounder, 39, addressed his affair with Raquel Leviss and subsequent split from Madix, 37.
“Hey, I fully understand and deserve ur anger & disappointment towards me, but please leave [Tom] Schwartz, my friends and family out of this situation … Schwartz specifically only found out about this very recently, and most definitely did not condone my actions. This was a very personal thing,” he wrote via Instagram on Saturday.
In the lengthy social media upload, Sandoval requested that fans not punish his businesses as a result of the scandal. “Also, Schwartz & Sandy’s might have my name on it, but also there are 3 other partners and 20 employees, who especially rely on the restaurant for income for them and their families. Just like TomTom, I’m a small part of a much bigger thing,” he continued. “Please direct ur anger towards me and not them. They did nothing wrong.”
Sandoval concluded: “I’m so sorry that my partners, Greg, Brett, and Schwartz and our employees have to suffer for my actions. I will be taking a step back & taking a hiatus out of respect for my employees & partners.”
Us Weekly confirmed on Friday, March 3, that the Missouri native and Madix called it quits after nearly a decade together. At the time, a source told Us that Sandoval cheated on the Florida native with Leviss, 28.
“They were having problems for a while,” the insider shared, noting that things “only came to a breaking point” when Madix found out that her then-boyfriend was unfaithful.
The former couple’s coworkers were quick to show their support for Madix amid the controversy.
Ariana’s brother, Jeremy Madix, also clapped back at Sandoval, writing via Instagram, “It’s funny to watch people social climb and be soooooooo fake that they’re willing to s—t on people that are supposed to be their ‘best friend’ (a term that gets thrown around very often around here) all just to come up or have some sort of story line. This lifestyle and this group is beyond toxic and I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone.”
Ahead of their breakup, Ariana weighed in on rumors that she and Sandoval were in an open relationship. “We dont have an open relationship. i’m really not that cool. thought that was obvious,” she tweeted in January, while referring to a sneak peek of season 10 which included close moments between her ex and Leviss.
Sign up for Us Weekly’s free, daily newsletter and never miss breaking news or exclusive stories about your favorite celebrities, TV shows and more!
One month later, Ariana elaborated on the speculation, exclusively telling Us, “I shut it down just because I feel like when you let things ruminate like that, it kind of just becomes more than it is. Honestly, it would be really sexy if we were, but we’re not.”
