California

Latin Singer Luis Miguel Released From Custody Following Arrest in Los Angeles

Officials say Mexican singer Luis Miguel has been released from custody after he surrendered to U.S. marshals in a case involving a dispute with his former manager.

Deputy US Marshal Matthew Cordova says the singer, whose full name is Luis Miguel Gallego Basteri, was released on bond after appearing before a federal judge in Los Angeles Tuesday.

Miguel had surrendered to authorities earlier Tuesday after being held in contempt for failing to appear at court hearings.

Miguel’s former manager William Brockhaus, who represented the singer from 2013 to 2015, filed a lawsuit against the musician last year, claiming Miguel reneged on a compensation agreement. In his lawsuit, Brockhaus said the "Sueña" singer owed him over $1 million in commissions, plus interest and attorney’s fees. A California judge agreed.

But Miguel has failed to make payments on his outstanding debt and in January, Los Angeles Judge Virginia Phillips ordered the seizure of the star's luxury Rolls Royce. He has also evaded court hearings on the case.

It is the latest in a series of legal dramas plaguing the international star. In January, Mexican singer Alejandro Fernández filed a breach of contract suit against Miguel after he pulled out of a joint tour that had already been announced, Telemundo 51 reported.

Miguel’s record label Warner Mexico is also reportedly suing the singer, according to People En Espanol. In a lawsuit filed in March 2017, Warner Mexico accused Miguel of failing to pay back a nearly $4 million loan from 2014. It was not immediately clear why the company loaned him the money.

The five-time Grammy winner has been one of the most popular performers in Latin America for over three decades, earning the nickname "El Sol de México" (The Sun of Mexico). 

Miguel has sold more than 100 million records worldwide and enjoyed a successful career in multiple genres, including pop, mariachi, ballads and boleros.

He was the first Latino artist to have two Spanish-language albums, "Romance" and "Segundo Romance," go platinum in the U.S. In 1995, he was the only Latin artist invited to sing at Frank Sinatra's "80 Years My Way" tribute after recording a duet with "Ol' blue eyes" a year earlier.

The Latin crooner's love life has also garnered headlines. He dated singer Mariah Carey for nearly three years after meeting in Aspen in 2001, and had a on-again, off-again relationship with actress Sofia Vergara over several years in the early '90s. Miguel was also linked to former MTV host Daisy Fuentes. The couple dated for three years before breaking up in 1998. 

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