Vanderpump Rules’ Tom Sandoval is speaking out after he allegedly cheated on Ariana Madix with their co-star Raquel Leviss. “Hey, I fully understand and deserve ur anger and disappointment towards me, but please leave Schwartz my friends and family out of this situation…,” Tom, 39, began. He then addressed his business partner Tom Schwartz, who Raquel was recently accused of hooking up with as well after his his divorce from Katie Maloney.
“Schwartz specifically only found out about this very recently, and most definitely did not condone my actions. This was a very personal thing,” he went on. Sandoval also reminded fans that bar-restaurant Schwartz & Sandy’s “might have my name on it” but that there are “three other partners” and “20 employees” who rely on the business for their income. “Please direct ur anger towards me and not them,” he begged as he apologized to them and said that he “needs time to address everything.”
It appears that Tom and Ariana have ended their nine year relationship amid the scandal. Per reports, Madix, 37, spotted evidently inappropriate messages sent between Raquel and Tom as he performed with his band Tom Sandoval & the Most Extras on Wednesday, March 1. The romance between Sandoval and Raquel allegedly has gone on for over six months, per PEOPLE magazine.
“This has been going on for upwards of 6 months — all the while, Tom was sleeping next to Ariana in bed,” a source told the magazine. “She was completely blindsided by this; devastated doesn’t even scratch the surface of how she feels. This is someone she thought she knew; someone she planned to spend the rest of her life with. You can’t even put into words that betrayal,” the source added.
Fresh off the scandal making the rounds, Raquel’s ex-fiancé James Kennedy weight in by posting a screenshot of the headline from TMZ. “Hope you all feel as sick as I do. This explains everything,” he said. Notably, James and Raquel began dating in 2016, ultimately becoming engaged in May 2021 — but broke up six months later.