'90 Day Fiance': Paul Staehle's Criminal History Resurfaces

Before former 90 Day Fiance franchise star Paul Staehle joined the TLC series, he had several run-ins with the law, which he ultimately had to discuss while on the show. Staehle was reportedly found guilty of felony arson in Kentucky in 2014 and was charged with violating an emergency protective order in 2013. Although Staehle no longer appears in any of the 90 Day Fiance shows, he and wife Karine Martins have continued to make headlines after Martins got a restraining order against Staehle.

Staehle and Martins, who is from Brazil, made their 90 Day Fiance debut in the first season of 90 Day Fiance: Before the 90 Days, which aired back in 2017. They went on to appear on the first season of The Other Way and Season 5 of Happily Ever After?, which aired earlier this year. The couple married in November 2017 and welcomed a baby, son Pierre, in March 2019. They broke up in November 2019 but reunited.

Ahead of the Before the 90 Days premiere, Starcasm reported Staehle had a long criminal record in Kentucky. In 2007, Staehle was charged with second-degree arson and "burning personal property to defraud an insurer," according to the Kentucky corrections website. Seven years later, he was convicted and spent a brief time in jail. His supervised release was scheduled to end in April 2020.

Other online records show Staehle was charged with violating an emergency protective order (EPO) and a domestic violence order in 2013. Over a month after Starcasm's report, Staehle shared a photo of the 2013 arrest report on Facebook. The documents showed Staehle was arrested for texting an ex after the order was issued. He suggested that the attention spent on the order was overblown, noting that he filed the first EPO. "She then filed one after she was served," Staehle wrote, referring to his ex. "This was my violation I was arrested over."

Staehle did refer to his criminal record on the show, reports InTouch Weekly. "One of the relationships I was in ended so badly, it ended up getting me in some serious trouble," he said, adding that he had not told Martins about the situation. He eventually did, but Martin and her family still accepted him.

The ongoing issues between Martins and Staehle began on July 30, when Martins allegedly called the police on Staehle, who live-streamed the scene on Instagram. The next day, Staehle shared photos of a restraining order Martins filed against him, in which she accused him of harassment and sexual assault. Staehle also claimed Martins was missing with Pierre, but she later told fans on Instagram this was not the case. Staehle also shared a screenshot of a plane ticket he bought to Manaus, Brazil, leaving Kentucky on Aug. 18.