According to a complaint obtained by Page Six and filed on Tuesday by her former yoga teacher, Lauren Sanchez is being accused of plagiarizing a concept for her new children's book, “The Fly That Flew Into Space.”
Alana Zabel, who claims to have been Sanchez's personal mentor from 2007 to 2011, claims she had “verbal and written discussions” with the former journalist about book ideas over a 16-year period.
However, the yoga instructor claimed in her lawsuit that it was only in 2022 that she presented a “concrete” concept for a “cat flying to Mars” for a children's book titled “Dharma Kitty Goes to Mars.”
Zabel claims she also reached out to Sanchez's fiancé, Jeff Bezos, to discuss “donating proceeds from the book to the Bezos Earth Fund and Bezos Academy.”
The yoga teacher did not admit to having been in contact with the Amazon founder, 60, but claimed his personal assistant reassured her that “Mr Bezos had received her emails”.
Zabel said in the lawsuit that Sanchez, 54, had “entrusted her with intellectual property and concepts” despite his past “constant and outrageous jealousy.”
“Defendants' actions were extreme and outrageous, carried out with intent to harm Plaintiff and motivated by personal jealousy and a personal desire to appear publicly 'charitable and caring,' and therefore constitute intentional infliction of emotional distress,” the yogis, who filed the lawsuit without a lawyer, argue in their own lawsuit.
“In short, Defendant has at all times demonstrated a desire to appear like Plaintiff – an honest, independent, free-spirited, hard-working, public-service-oriented yoga instructor.”
This is not the first time Zabel has threatened legal action against Sanchez: the lecturer sent him a cease and desist letter in March, when the media personality first published his new book.
Sanchez He wrote on Instagram At the time she wrote, “I still can't believe it!!! I am so, so excited to share with you all the cover of my first children's book, 'The Fly That Flew Into Space'.”
“I'm so grateful for this story because it holds a part of my heart. It's a celebration of overcoming obstacles, the joy of learning, and dreaming beyond the stars.”
The Fly in Space is officially released on September 10th, and during the press tour, Sanchez claimed to have a deep personal connection to the book's storyline.
“I always thought I was stupid,” the socialite says. He told “Extra” On Tuesday, she spoke about how she found out she'd been diagnosed with dyslexia, and how a teacher once told her, “You're not stupid, you're just bad at spelling.”
“Everyone says it's a learning disability, but it's not. It's a learning difference, and that's what the book is about,” Sanchez explained.
“This is for kids who feel out of place because they're not learning like everyone else in their class, but they're OK.”
Zabel's lawsuit alleges that Sanchez “apparently changed her promotional themes to focus on dyslexia, even though dyslexia is not mentioned anywhere in her book.”
She alleges that the ordeal has caused her great emotional distress and severe psychological harm, and has affected her personal and professional goals, reputation and well-being.
The yoga teacher is seeking “appropriate” compensation and relief, though she has not specified an amount, and is also requesting a jury trial.
A representative for Sanchez did not immediately respond to Page Six's request for comment.
Zabel previously made headlines after she had a falling out with former client Adam Levine, publicly claiming that the Maroon 5 frontman, 45, “treated her like garbage.” She gave the example of a situation with her former roommate. University of Idaho Murders 2022.
