Kelli Ferrell, a solid member on The Real Housewives of Atlanta, is going through severe allegations from her ex-husband, Chuvalo Mark Ferrell, who claims she misused enterprise mortgage funds from their joint restaurant, Nana’s Chicken-N-Waffles, for private spending, together with on pricy magnificence and spa therapies. What started as a monetary dispute has since escalated into emergency court docket filings, allegations of conflicts, and Mark serving greater than 40 days in jail.
Mark accused Kelli of enterprise misconduct.
On Jan. 14, Mark Ferrell sat down for indepth interview with TSR Investigates to inform his aspect of the story, accusing Kelli of enterprise misconduct. At the middle of the dispute is Nana’s Chicken-N-Waffles, a restaurant enterprise the previous couple reportedly launched collectively. According to Mark, the pair secured greater than $700,000 in enterprise loans with plans to develop their restaurant all through the Atlanta space. He alleges that Kelli as a substitute diverted a portion of these funds towards private bills, together with hair and make-up.
“It was properly over $30,000,” Mark alleged throughout a TSR Investigates interview with Justin Carter. “She was really spending the cash round her birthday — so, , simply spending uncontrolled.” He added, “5,000 right here, 5,000 there.”
Expense studies shared in the course of the interview reportedly confirmed costs for $150 spa classes, a $21 nail appointment, and $5,000 transfers into Kelli’s private checking accounts.
Concerned about spending, Mark Ferrell stated his enterprise supervisor, Latoya Francis-Williams, suggested him to switch the remaining funds from their joint enterprise account into his private account to guard the funds and curb additional misuse. Soon after, a brand new working settlement was drafted, prohibiting both occasion from borrowing cash on behalf of the corporate or lending firm funds.
According to Francis-Williams, Kelli initially agreed to the phrases. The settlement established 50/50 possession of Nana’s Chicken-N-Waffles and included strict monetary controls stating that each events “shall not…borrow cash on behalf of the corporate, lend any firm funds or different property to any particular person, or change the character or character of the enterprise of the corporate and not using a unanimous vote.”
Francis-Williams advised Carter in the course of the TSR Investigates interview that one of many key restrictions required each their signatures for withdrawals.
“One of the foremost restrictions was that Kelli couldn’t withdraw cash and not using a second signature, which was Mr. Ferrell,” the enterprise supervisor claimed. “We have the textual content messages the place she acknowledges not solely the phrases, however with the ability to discuss in strong conversations. But unbeknownst to Mr. Ferrell, Kelli had secretly employed an legal professional to go to court docket.”
Francis-Williams additional alleged that Kelli filed an emergency petition with out Mark’s information, misrepresenting her involvement within the enterprise.
“She made representations that she had no thought what was occurring with the enterprise. That was a lie,” she stated.
According to Francis-Williams, the court docket dominated inside sooner or later and granted a brief injunction with out Mark being notified or served.
Kelli Ferrell had this to say in regards to the ongoing enterprise battle after the TSR Investigates interview debuted.
Mark’s look didn’t sit properly with Kelli. Shortly after the interview aired, the RHOA star appeared to respond on Instagram, posting a message directed at her ex-husband.
“My ex narcissist hating me is definitely so VALID, as a result of I can do all of the issues he couldn’t. Admit I like males, pay the payments, maintain a job, inform the reality. Grow up and MOST necessary RAISE MY CHILDREN,” she wrote.
Kelli has additionally publicly disputed Mark’s model of occasions. During an look on TS Madison’s Outlaws podcast on Dec. 23, 2025, Kelli claimed that Mark wrongfully withdrew practically $500,000 from their enterprise account whereas she was on a visit to Mexico.
“We needed to go to court docket and people had been the turning factors,” Kelli advised TS Madison of what led to their divorce after 11 years of marriage. The couple finalized their divorce in 2025, in keeping with Bravo.
She additionally alleged that after leaving the wedding with “nothing,” she slept on an air mattress at her townhouse for 2 months and obtained no monetary assist from Mark after shifting out of their marital house.
“He didn’t assist me financially. He wasn’t paying baby help. He wasn’t serving to.”
Mark maintains that though he moved the funds, he later returned them in parts and says the motion was taken solely to stop additional misappropriation.
Mark was launched from jail this month for unpaid baby help, in keeping with a report.
The authorized and monetary battle later spilled into household court docket. Mark was launched from jail earlier this month after being incarcerated for unpaid baby help, in late December, as beforehand reported. According to Us Weekly, he spent 17 nights behind bars earlier than being launched on Jan. 8 from the Rockdale County Jail in Georgia.
His consultant advised the outlet that Mark “formally glad his baby help obligation in full” by paying $61,992 from “the proceeds of the sale of his former marital residence.”
“As a outcome, Mr. Ferrell’s baby help stability is now zero, and he has been launched from custody,” the rep stated. “Mr. Ferrell and his authorized workforce state that this matter may have been resolved far earlier had he been granted well timed entry to the escrowed house sale proceeds.”
The rep added, “For greater than a 12 months, Mr. Ferrell sought permission to make use of these funds to pay baby help in full, believing that doing so was essentially the most accountable and direct option to resolve the problem.”
According to his consultant, Mark “maintains that his intent was by no means to keep away from supporting his youngsters, however moderately to resolve the duty fully and completely as soon as the funds had been launched.”
Mark additionally believes his baby help funds must be modified to mirror his present revenue. His rep famous that Mark has beforehand been jailed twice over help points and was compelled to borrow cash to safe his launch.
“Despite these challenges, Mr. Ferrell has constantly supported his youngsters in sensible methods — offering for his or her wants by Amazon purchases, Apple Pay transfers, meals supply companies, and different means, significantly during times when formal baby help funds had been rejected.”
Kelli and Mark had been married from 2011 to 2022 and share three youngsters collectively: Chance, born in 2012, and twins Chasiti and Chelsi, born in 2015. Kelli can be the mom of a 17-year-old daughter, Chloe, from a earlier relationship.
What do you consider this messy enterprise drama between Chuvalo Mark Ferrell and Kelli Ferrell? Thoughts?
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