KUALA LUMPUR: The former husband of actress Betty Banafe reveals that the custody case involving their two young children is still ongoing.
In a statement sent to NST to dispel certain factual errors that were carried by the media recently, Bruce Dargus wrote: “I am the plaintiff in a Hadhanah (child custody) case filed at Selangor Syariah High Court for custody of our two children, Julia Claire Dargus binti Bruce Dargus, 5, and Bruce Dean Dargus bin Bruce Dargus, 3.”
He added: “The case is still in the very early stages and trial has not yet begun, so I was very surprised to see some news outlets reporting that Ibtisam (Betty’s real name) had been awarded custody of my children by the court, which at this stage is actually impossible.”
The British-American businessman and technology consultant also clarified that the divorce took place on July 4, and not July 10 which had been widely reported in the media.
He said: “After being married to her for approximately seven years, I divorced my former wife, Ibtisam binti Sekh Abu Bakar a.k.a. Betty Banafe, on July 4th, 2019 by the utterance of one Talaq before two male Malaysian Muslim witnesses at Sultan Salahuddin Abdul Aziz Mosque in Shah Alam, Selangor.”
He added: “I divorced her again by the utterance of a second Talaq the next day on July 5th, 2019 before a different pair of witnesses at my parents home in Ampang, Selangor.”
Dargus, who married the actress on Dec 8, 2012, explained that divorce was a difficult thing for the former spouses, extended family and particularly the children.
“Mutual friends often have to choose sides and the divorce is not only the separation of two people from one another, but the painful tearing of what was one world into two. For reasons I will not detail now, this process has been excruciating for me and I would consider it one of the most turbulent and torturous periods in my life.”
“My only goal now is to ensure the safety and wellbeing of my children as their father and guardian and will give the court my full cooperation so that it can decide what is best for the future.”