Yankee Wife Allegedly Committed Arson To Land 'Real Housewives Of New York' Cast

The wife of a former pitcher of the New York Yankees is being sued on Friday after a neighbor claimed that she intentionally started a fire in her apartment in an attempt to get into the show "Real Housewives of New York."

Taja Abitbol, the wife of New York Yankees pitcher David Cone, was reportedly attempting to get a gig on the "Real Housewives of New York" when the incident happened, which she tried to hype up during an appearance on the "Tamron Hall Show," according to the New York Post.

“Yesterday morning, I basically set the house on fire during Mercury retrograde and I had to move. I came here from my hotel room,” the lawsuit claimed she said during the show.

The man who is suing is her downstairs neighbor at the time, Daniel Rice. Rice, who is an Army vet and a Purple Heart recipient, is asking for $320,000 for the damage that the fire caused his house, which he said he had to do a “gut renovation to return [the apartment] to the condition it was in before the fire,” ILTUWS reported.

“Upon information and belief, Abitbol and/or Cone deliberately, knowingly, intentionally and/or recklessly caused the fire on Nov. 6, 2019 in order for Abitbol to have a story to discuss on the Tamron Hall Show and/or to advance Abitbol’s candidacy as a castmate for the Real Housewives of New York television show, among other things,” the lawsuit stated.

Rice, who is currently working as a Special Advisor to Commander-in-Chief of the Ukrainian Armed Forces General Valeriy Zaluzhnyy, was unable to move back to his apartment due to renovation until this year.

The fire was ruled an accident by authorities at the time.

Eric Lerner, the lawyer of Cone and Abitbol, cited the report in his defense of the couple and in stating his belief that the lawsuit has no basis.

“They have been wrongfully accused of a crime despite the FDNY ruling this an accident after the investigation was done. And likewise, the insurance company also ruled this to be an accident after an investigation was done,” Lerner said.