A famous actor was jailed over a fight with his wife – then salaciously accused her of cheating on him as he was freed on bail.
Pedro Moreno, 44, was arrested Wednesday evening after he argued with Bárbara Estévez, his wife of 17 years.
The Spanish-language soap opera actor received permission from Estevez to use her cellular phone and then reportedly began ‘snooping’, with a fight exploding after he allegedly uncovered texts suggesting his wife had been unfaithful.
Moreno refused to hand over the cellphone to Estevez as tensions flared inside their residence.
Their oldest daughter then passed her mobile phone over to her mother, who called 911 before Moreno gave up the phone before the police arrived.
The popular actor, who is in the process of divorcing Estévez, spoke to reporters in Spanish as he walked out of the Miami-Dade jail after paying a $1,000 bail bond.
‘What my wife said is correct, read the affidavit, don’t add one more word, don’t add one less word, the situation between my wife and I,’ Moreno said.
‘And the conversations show that we are a real couple, like many couples, who have arguments and have moments of happiness and moments of crisis.’
Moreno appeared to have hinted that both had made mistakes that led to the breakup of their marriage, but didn’t spell out whether he’d cheated too.
‘She made decisions that had consequences, and I made decisions that also have consequences for the future of our relationship,’ he said.
‘What happens from now on will be determined by her and me, with the love we obviously have for each other and for the sake of our children.’
Estévez appeared in an online court hearing and asked the judge to dismiss the battery charge that Moreno is facing.
‘I didn’t know that by calling, they would have to do a full investigation and basically take him in, otherwise I would’ve never called because he was never violent,’ she said.
‘Is there any way of dismissing the case? He’s not a violent person. we’ve never had an issue like this before.’
Moreno and Estévez share the custody of three children, 11, 17 and 21.
‘We’re going to handle it the way we always have. We’re in a world of adults. This is not about blame,’ Moreno said.
‘What we decide from here on out is our problem. She’s an excellent woman, she always has been, an excellent mother. I love her a lot. She’s always supported me. And this is simply out in the media because it escalated in a way it didn’t have to.’
Moreno was born in Havana and has appeared in the soap operas, Cosita Linda, Voltea pa’ que te enamores, Me declaro culpable and Amores que engañan.