Judge Tosses Eddie Sotelo Extortion Suit

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge has dismissed an extortion lawsuit brought by popular Spanish-language radio personality Eddie “Piolin” Sotelo against six former staff members of his canceled Univision Radio show — and ruled that Sotelo may be liable for his adversaries’ legal fees, according to the LA Times.

In a civil lawsuit filed in August, Sotelo claimed that he was the victim of a shakedown by the former workers and their attorneys.

Sotelo maintained that the group banded together to demand $4.9 million from him in exchange for their silence — or else they would go public with additional allegations about boorish behavior on his Univision Radio show, which had been canceled a month earlier.

Judge Richard A. Stone dismissed Sotelo's lawsuit late last week, finding that Sotelo had failed to prove that he would prevail with his extortion claims during a trial. The judge also said the former workers could file a petition demanding that Sotelo pay their legal costs.

Sotelo's attorney, Jeffrey Spitz, vowed to appeal.

“Piolin” means Tweety Bird, and Univision agreed to end their partnership in July a few months after a producer on the show, Alberto “Beto” Cortez, complained to the network that Sotelo had sexually harassed him over a three-year period.  Afterwards, everal others who had been involved with Sotelo’s show brought their concerns to the lawyers who were representing Cortez in his dealings with Univision.

Sotelo, who now has a morning show on SiriusXM satellite radio, has described his former staff as ungrateful and opportunistic.

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