Jim Carrey Responds to Ex-Girlfriend’s Claims of ‘Mental Abuse and Disease’

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Jim Carrey introduced his ex-girlfriend Cathriona White to “cocaine, prostitutes, mental abuse and disease,” according to a recently unearthed letter allegedly written by White in 2013.

The actor is currently being sued for wrongful death by White’s estranged husband, Mark Burton, and her mother, Brigid Sweetman. Both are claiming that Carrey used a false name to obtain the drugs that White used to kill herself in 2015, and that he provided them to her despite knowing she was prone to depression and had previously attempted suicide. They’re also alleging that Carrey gave White “three STDs without warning her.”

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On Friday, Carrey responded with a counter-complaint against White’s attorney Filippo Marchino, his office The X Law Group, Burton and Sweetman, alleging that their lawsuit is just the latest in a series of extortion attempts made against him by members of the group.

After Carey’s filing, Burton and Sweetman’s attorney Michael Avenatti revealed in a statement to PEOPLE that lawyers representing White’s family in their wrongful death case uncovered an explosive letter from White to Carrey “during a forensic examination of Ms. White’s iPad.”

Avenatti claimed in a statement that the “note, written in Cat’s own words, shows the world how Jim Carrey treated her while she was alive and the depths of his destructive behavior. We look forward to trying our case to a Los Angeles jury.”

 

In the note, allegedly written on her iPad on April 8, 2013, White wrote, “This is what I want, you gave me hsv and hpv, I want you to apologize for it because you care enough to.”

Furthermore, White allegedly claimed, “I met you, you introduced me to cocaine, prostitutes, mental abuse and disease.”

White also allegedly wrote, “I didn’t get a lawyer so I could take your money and I am probably going to get in trouble for texting you.”

In response, Carrey’s attorney Ray Boucher told PEOPLE, “This note helps establish the evidence that this was pure fraud, and that [White], her lawyers and other were trying to establish a basis for Jim into ultimately settling with her based on these false claims.”

He added, “This was part of her and her lawyers campaign to extort money from Jim and ultimately he succumbed.”

According Carrey’s cross-complaint obtained by PEOPLE. between March and August of 2013, White, “with the participation and assistance” of her attorney, threatened to “go to the press” with false claims that Carrey had given her STDs. They allegedly supported that claim with records, filed under an alias, that “purportedly” showed she did not have the STDs prior to meeting Carrey.

In a statement, Carrey said, “Unfortunately, I made the mistake three years ago of giving in and settling false claims made against me by Mr. Marchino, on behalf of Cat, as mounting a public defense is a very costly and painful process.

“At the time I felt Cat was being exploited by Marchino. Since this new case was filed, I have discovered the depth of deception behind those false claims, the kind of deception decent people fall for, because to us, such behavior is unimaginable.

“I will not give in a second time to these same fraudulent charges initiated by Cat’s husband in name but not substance Mark Burton, and her estranged mother. Nor am I responsible for what these desperate characters have inadvertently unearthed about the the woman I adored. I was clearly blinded by my affection. Regardless, I will hold a place of empathy, and forgiveness for Cat and continue to focus on the many blessings in this life.”

In a response, Burton, Marchino and Sweetman’s attorney Michael Avenatti told PEOPLE in a statement, “Jim Carrey is so desperate to avoid the public knowing the truth about his own outrageous conduct, that he has now resorted to outlandish accusations against innocent people. As his interview from a few weeks ago shows, the guy is incoherent and unhinged. He needs help.”

This article originally appeared on People.com

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