RHOC Where is Sweet James? Noella says he’s been gone for 5 months and wants her to say she lied
The documentation of Noella Bergener’s stressful and shocking divorce will continue with tonight’s episode of Real Housewives of Orange County, and Noella is sharing new information about how the divorce is still stagnant months later. “Sweet” James Bergener hasn’t seen his son with Noella, James Jr., in 5 months and has even fled California to avoid legal service. He still has Noella cut off financially and refuses to give her answers about the divorce. Right before he left Noella, she had found out about his almost $6 million tax debt through gossip websites and was trying to find a way to pay it.
“BRUTAL to relive 😭 5 months ago my husband and partner of 6 years left the house with his toothbrush leaving behind his life, family and home,” Noella wrote about the events from this summer being shown on Season 16 of Real Housewives of Orange County. In the last episode, titled “Gone Guy,” Noella was shocked to be served with divorce papers from Puerto Rico, which according to Noella, weren’t valid. She has since served her own divorce papers but says that James refuses to move forward with the divorce unless she signs documents saying she lied about him.
“He ended our marriage with service of divorce papers from Puerto Rico. Which he doesn’t qualify for since we are California citizens and nothing untoward happened in our marriage there,” Noella explained about the Puerto Rico divorce papers.
“We had been arguing since I found out of his tax debts through gossip sites 3 weeks prior and was confused with his push back to selling our vacation home to cover them,” Noella continued. This home was in Puerto Rico and had only been purchased by the couple a few months prior to the tax scandal and divorce.
“To this date James has not visited our son or given me any explanation for his departure,” she wrote. “He has fled the state to evade service. My cards are still shut off, he hasn’t paid a dime in support, he stopped paying for our home and is currently holding up our divorce unless I sign a statement saying that I lied about him, his business partner and his brand.”
Noella said she did not lie. “I spoke nothing but the truth and have all the receipts,” she said. “If anything I really protected my husband by not speaking about his issues but rather focused on my journey in this now divorce.”
She wishes the best for James still, despite her current situation with him. “He is the father of my child and want him to be well,” she said. “After his departure I made the decision to stay on the show we were primarily doing to promote his brand because frankly it was the only thing getting me out of bed and with the hope that others going through something similar could understand they’re not alone.”
Noella has yet to even hear any sort of explanation from James. “I realize there are three sides to every story. I have asked him to give an explanation through a 3rd party to provide insight which he has repeatedly declined,” she said.”Everything I’ve said and am saying are FACTS. Thank you for your continued support and prayers for my family. I don’t wish to encourage James bashing with this post. Just providing insight to the hell I am still in ❤️🩹 #rhoc #divorcesucks #ineedclosure”
Noella has stated multiple times that the show has been a great help to her during this difficult time. She told the Orange County Register that she initially thought about leaving the show once the truth about her husband’s tax debt came to light, but that the producers were so supportive that she decided to stay, which she doesn’t regret because being on the show has given her more courage to stand up for herself.
“The show was giving me the strength, and empowering me, really, to look deep into it,” Noella said. “It was giving me strength, really, for the first time in my marriage to be like, “No, that doesn’t make sense to me.’ If it doesn’t make sense to me, it’s not gonna make sense to America, or, you know, these ladies.”
Noella has filed for sole custody of their two-year-old son James Jr., who has been diagnosed with autism. She also has a 7-year-old daughter, Coco, from another marriage.
Before all these stressful development, Noella considered James to be her “best friend.” Now, she has no contact with him.
Where is Sweet James?
Noella claims that James is currently living out-of-state, but didn’t say where he is now. When he left this summer, she got divorce papers from Puerto Rico, which may indicate that he had gone to live at the vacation property that Noella wanted to sell to pay his tax debt. His law firm runs out of Newport Beach, CA, but it’s a multi-person firm so he doesn’t need to physically be there to have the business run as usual.
