Montia Sabbag May Testify in Kevin Hart Legal Battle Over 2017 Scandal

Montia Sabbag, the woman at the center of the 2017 Kevin Hart sex tape scandal, may return to a courtroom nine years after the controversy erupted. Shakes wants Sabbag to answer questions under oath about the 2017 Las Vegas incident and the extortion investigation that followed.

Shakes Seeks Sabbag’s Testimony in Los Angeles Superior Court

The potential witness appearance is part of an ongoing legal battle unfolding in Los Angeles Superior Court. Hart filed the current lawsuit in December 2023 against Shakes and YouTube personality Latasha “Tasha K” Kebe. The comedian sued the pair for extortion, defamation, breach of contract, and invasion of privacy after Shakes gave a tell-all interview to Kebe regarding her time working as Hart’s personal assistant.

According to court documents, Shakes and Kebe allegedly demanded $250,000 to suppress the interview. Hart also claims Shakes violated her non-disclosure agreement by discussing his private life on camera. Shakes countered by arguing that the NDA is unenforceable because Hart allegedly failed to provide three years of health insurance as outlined in her 2017 employment contract. She also argues that Hart damaged his own reputation years before the interview.

The 2017 Las Vegas Weekend That Sparked the Legal Dispute

Shakes’s defense strategy relies heavily on revisiting the events of August 2017, when Hart traveled to The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas with his longtime friend Jonathan Todd “J.T.” Jackson. Hart was married at the time, and his wife, Eniko Parrish, was pregnant with their first child. During that weekend, Hart took the drug Molly (MDMA) and met Sabbag and another woman named Morgan, bringing them to his hotel suite.

The footage leaked publicly in September 2017, triggering an FBI investigation into an extortion plot. Jackson was arrested in 2018 and charged with multiple felonies, though all remaining charges against him were dropped in October 2021 after he and Hart reached a settlement.

What Sabbag’s Potential Court Appearance Could Involve

If a judge permits Shakes to call Sabbag as a witness, the proceedings will re-examine the mechanics of the recording and the subsequent extortion inquiry. Shakes wants Sabbag to testify about the circumstances of the hidden camera, her interactions with Hart and his associates, and how the scandal impacted Hart’s public image. Sabbag previously filed a $60 million lawsuit against Hart, Jackson, and the Cosmopolitan in 2019, alleging a conspiracy to generate publicity, but that suit was ultimately dismissed.

Judge Has Not Ruled on Sabbag Testimony

A judge has not yet ruled on whether Sabbag’s testimony will be allowed in the current lawsuit. Sabbag has not publicly stated whether she will agree to appear voluntarily or if she will require a subpoena. No trial date has been publicly set in the open Los Angeles Superior Court case.