Gloria Trevi News

Mexican pop diva Gloria Trevi is accusing a Mexican television network and the host of one of the country's most popular entertainment television shows of conspiring to attack her reputation, according a lawsuit.

Trevi's lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Hidalgo County district court, named Mexican network TV Azteca, its U.S. affiliate Azteca America and Pati Chapoy, host of "Ventaneando," a popular entertainment news show specializing in celebrity exposes. The lawsuit seeks damages that have yet to be specified, said her lawyer, Raymond Thomas.

Trevi was an international pop superstar until police arrested her, her manager and a backup singer in 2000, accusing them of luring young girls into their entourage and sexually abusing them. Trevi spent almost five years in prisons in Brazil and Mexico before she was acquitted on charges of kidnapping, rape and corruption of minors.

Her lawsuit claims the TV network tried to stop her comeback through a campaign of slander, libel and defamation, among other charges, as retribution for her refusing to sign with them. It accused the network of spreading rumors that Trevi was spotted with a notorious drug cartel leader, forcing her to move her family to McAllen where she began to resurrect her career.

In dramatic flourishes rarely seen in legal filings, the lawsuit said the defendants were "determined to prevent Gloria Trevi from rising from the ashes like the fabled Phoenix."

The lawsuit was filed in the United States where alleged programs aired and because Texas law states that defamation lawsuits should be filed where the plaintiff lives, said Thomas.

Calls for comment to Azteca America and TV Azteca were not immediately returned.

Trevi said Tuesday that she thought the media attacks would stop after her acquittal.

"And as a mother, I see myself in the situation of doing what any mother would do," Trevi said. "I am going to protect my family and my children against whatever."

Trevi gained fame in the 1990s as Mexico's Madonna, with songs of sexual independence, provocative dance moves and a look that included a wild mane of hair and often ripped tights.