Inset: Akira Montague. Background: Brenay Kennard and Tim Montague (Law&Crime).
A jury in North Carolina has awarded a woman $1.75 million after she said a popular TikTok influencer stole her husband in a wild trial in which she questioned her accuser on the stand and the man in question was arrested after he allegedly brought a gun to court.
The Tar Heel State is one of the few states in the country where people can file what's called an "alienation of affection" and a "criminal conversation" lawsuit. In essence, "alienation of affection" means a third party ruined a good marriage by having an affair with one of the spouses, while "criminal conversation" is a legal term for having sex with someone else's spouse.
Akira Montague last year filed both claims against Brenay Kennard, who has some 3 million followers on TikTok and roughly 275,000 on Instagram. Montague's complaint argued that Kennard ruined a marriage by having sex with Montague's husband while they were still together.
Montague wed Tim Montague in 2018 and subsequently had two children together in what the lawsuit described as a "happy and loving marriage" with "genuine love and affection" between them. Tim Montague worked as a sales manager for Kennard. Akira Montague and Kennard were close friends and would confide in each other about their respective marriages. The women's husbands were cousins and Kennard would stay at the Montague home, per the suit.
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But Akira Montague alleged that Kennard began to "seduce" Tim Montague by "wearing very short skirts" while "bending over" in front of him. The plaintiff claims Kennard and her husband first had sex in their home in December 2023.
"Defendant was seen twerking and shaking her bottom on Plaintiff's Husband in bathroom located in the marital home," the lawsuit stated.
The two began to have a "flirtatious" relationship that they would "flaunt" on social media, where Kennard is a lifestyle content creator, according to the lawsuit. They also would talk about how much they enjoyed having sex with one another — and even had intercourse when Akira Montague was at the home sleeping, per the suit.
Eventually, Tim Montague "abandoned" the plaintiff and their children to go live with Kennard, the lawsuit says.
This all led to a dramatic trial in which Kennard represented herself and confronted her accuser when she was on the stand. Nothing, it seemed, was out of bounds — even Kennard asking about Akira Montague's miscarriage.
"That must've been painful for you, right?" Kennard asked, according to a courtroom report from the Raleigh News & Observer.
Those in the gallery, many of whom were social media influencers documenting the case, reportedly gasped.
"Well, I wouldn't expect you to know since you don't have children," Akira Montague retorted.
At one point, the judge reportedly had to remove the jury to scold the two for "editorializing" and told them to stick with the facts of the case.
Akira Montague said that Kennard staying at the house made her so uncomfortable that she quit school, and Kennard suggested that Akira Montague wrongly blamed the defendant for all her problems.
"I take accountability for allowing an intruder into my home," Akira Montague said.
The plaintiff described the impact the situation had on her family.
"My children aren't the same," she reportedly testified through tears.
But in her closing arguments, Kennard dismissed the lawsuit as nothing but a money grab.
"This was a marriage that had been falling apart for years," she said, per the News & Observer.
While this was a civil case, all the parties in the case have been accused of committing crimes. Timothy Montague was arrested for bringing a gun to the courthouse on Nov. 5, according to records. Akira Montague was found guilty of criminal contempt for "violating a prior custody" order. Kennard was charged with cyberstalking.
After jurors deliberated for nearly two hours, they ruled in favor of the plaintiff — much to the delight of her supporters, who reportedly chanted "Team A-kira."