Friends of the “Vanderpump Rules” cast — and a portion of fans — believe Raquel Leviss had a black eye before her “heated confrontation” with Scheana Shay over the former’s bombshell affair with Tom Sandoval.
Kael Ramsey Ackerson, a close pal of many “Pump Rules” stars, took to Instagram Wednesday to share his take on Leviss’ purported injuries, allegedly inflicted by Shay.
“Sooooo I’ve tried to stay out of this whole thing but one thing we’re not about to do is lie,” he wrote, accompanying his post with a slideshow of photos of Leviss taken before March 1, when the alleged incident took place.
“All these photos were before #wwhl and in all of these this so-called ‘black eye’ was present @raquelleviss this is not how you treat family but again everything comes to light.”
Ackerson — who is no longer friends with Leviss, 28, but remains tight with Shay, 37, and more stars of the Bravo show — went on to say that he “can’t sit back and watch [Leviss] create narratives to save [her] own ass while trying to bring someone else down as a deflection.”
One photo Ackerson shared was a makeup-free image of Leviss, said to be captured in November 2022, where discoloration is visible underneath her left eye.
He also posted footage from Shay’s recent vlog documenting her and Leviss’ trip to New York City for a press tour — during which they made a stops at “Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen” and Page Six’s “Virtual Reali-Tea” podcast — where the same discoloration appears visible.
Singer Tori Keeth — another friend of the cast — shared Ackerson’s post in a Wednesday Instagram post, expressing her own thoughts on the matter.
“What you’ve done is disgusting enough. But to LIE about a black eye?” she wrote. “Come on Raquel, we’re not stupid. You are.”
Keeth added, “You’ve had this black eye since BEFORE you were ‘supposedly’ punched.”
In a follow-up Story post, the musician slammed Leviss for “[deciding] to f—k with scheanas life,” calling the former pageant queen’s claims “sad attempts to take the heat off of [her] despicable actions.”
Keeth also urged Leviss to “drop” what she perceives as “the victim card.” “We all see right through you,” she asserted. “Damn you really think you know somebody.”
A portion of “Pump Rules” enthusiasts are also not convinced that Shay is behind Leviss’ alleged shiner.
One Instagram account, @everyonesbusinessbutmine, shared more pre-“Scandoval” photos of Leviss, where the discoloration in question also appears visible.
“Raquel must get black eyes a lot!” they facetiously wrote in their caption. “Prayers up to her.”
Many others casted doubt on Leviss’ claims against Shay.
“I really just don’t think Scheana is capable of this,” one wrote in an Instagram comment on a @queensofbravoplus post on the matter.
“So rachel had this black eye long before hmmm,” another wrote, referring to Leviss by her legal name. “The math ain’t mathing for me babe.”
Someone else chimed in to say, “yeah this was a thing way before all the drama. sorry rachel.”
Meanwhile, a source close to Leviss exclusively asserts to Page Six, “She did not previously have a black eye, nor did she have a cut over her eye. There is a doctor’s report attached to the TRO [temporary restraining order] paperwork.”
Page Six has reached out to Leviss’ rep for comment.
As Page Six exclusively revealed Wednesday, Leviss has been hiding out with family in the aftermath of her cheating scandal with Sandoval, 40.
We reported last Friday that the pair had a “full-on” affair while Sandoval was in a nearly decade-long relationship with now-ex-girlfriend Ariana Madix.
Madix, 37, discovered inappropriate communication — including a sexually explicit video featuring Leviss — on his cell phone the night of March 1, prompting her to swiftly dump him.
Both Leviss and Sandoval have issued public apologies to Madix.
In a new Wednesday statement, Leviss said that although she still cares for Sandoval, she needed to take time to “heal” — which apparently means ghosting her affair partner.
“Tom has been unable to track Raquel down for several days,” one insider told us. “He’s been asking mutual acquaintances if they’ve heard from her at all, but has had no luck. He can’t get in touch with her.”
Dressed in an all-black ensemble, Leviss was photographed Wednesday smoking her vape as she walked through a shopping center.
Her alleged black eye appeared visible during the outing. However, the alleged cut to Leviss’ eyebrow — documented in her temporary restraining order filing against Shay — did not appear to be visible.
Leviss claimed that Shay — whose best friend is Madix — bruised her eye after she confessed to her indiscretions with Sandoval.
Reps for Shay and Leviss have not commented on the alleged physical dispute.
“Vanderpump Rules” airs Wednesdays at 9 p.m. ET on Bravo.