90 Day Fiancé couple Paul Staehle and Karine Staehle (née Martins) have had countless ups and downs throughout their tumultuous relationship ever since they made their debut on season 1 of 90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days, but they always seemed to be able to work through their issues. They made their departure from the TLC franchise in 2020 and have faced several struggles since then. But are they still together?

Inside ’90 Day Fiance’ Alums Paul and Karine’s Relationship Issues

Paul and Karine faced many obstacles from the start, which included long-distance (Karine is originally from Manaus, Brazil and Paul is from Louisville, Kentucky) and a language barrier (Karine only spoke Portuguese when they met while Paul only spoke English). Paul also asked Karine to take an STD test and a pregnancy test before they got intimate with each other, which upset and offended the Brazilian beauty. But she eventually agreed and they moved past it.

Then there was the issue of Paul hiding a big secret from his online love about his past. He eventually came clean to her about his criminal record, and while it caused a little bit of tension at first, Karine was still able to accept Paul and his history.

At the season 1 90 Day Fiancé: Before the 90 Days tell-all, Paul revealed he would be relocating to Brazil to be with Karine because she didn’t want to leave her family. They returned for season 2 of the TLC spinoff, where they documented the process leading up to their wedding day. It didn’t seem very likely they would make it down the aisle — especially because Paul had accused Karine of cheating on him with other American men, which Karine denied. Despite all of the obstacles between them, Paul and Karine ultimately did tie the knot and fans got to see their wedding on the show, which took place on November 3, 2017.

But it wasn’t all wedded bliss for the couple after that. Following their wedding, the pair suffered two miscarriages before conceiving their rainbow baby, son Pierre. Karine announced her pregnancy on the season 2 tell-all. They welcomed their first child on March 22, 2019.

Calling It Quits? '90 Day Fiancé' Star Paul Staehle Says Karine Filed for Divorce
Courtesy of Paul Staehle/Instagram

When Did 90 Day Fiance’s Paul Staehle and Karine Staehle Split?

Unfortunately, the couple went through more marital woes  just eight months after Pierre’s birth. After Paul claimed Karine filed for divorce in Brazil, she confirmed their split in a statement to Us Weekly.

In December 2019, Paul took to Instagram Live to allege Karine left with Pierre to spend the holidays with another man, local musician Blake Sakal. She denied his claims via her Instagram Story, claiming she did “not run away with another man.”

Karine and Paul Staehle
Courtesy of Paul Staehle/Instagram

In June 2020, the couple returned to reality TV on season 5 of 90 Day Fiancé: Happily Ever After? , which documented their move from Brazil to the United States. Karine did not want to live in America, but she agreed after Paul convinced her it would be best for their family because he struggled to find work in Brazil because of the language barrier. Paul continued to struggle with unemployment after they moved, which he blamed on his criminal record, and the couple’s main source of tension on the show stemmed from Paul’s inability to provide financially for his family. Karine threatened to return to Brazil several times if Paul couldn’t offer her and Pierre a stable life in Louisville.

But there was also drama brewing between the couple offscreen. On July 30, 2020, Paul streamed a police visit to their marital home after Karine called the cops following a dispute between them in a since-deleted Instagram Live. Paul claimed the fight started after he looked over at his wife’s phone and saw she had been communicating with a Brazilian lawyer inquiring about “child support and divorce.” The couple continued to fight throughout the day, which led to the cops being called a second time.

After that, Karine — who was pregnant with baby No. 2 at the time — left their marital home and filed a restraining order against her husband. Even though Paul claimed Karine had gone “missing” after she moved out of the house, she denied it in a statement on August 2, 2020.

“I want you all to know that me and Pierre are doing well now. All this past days [sic] I had a lot going on,” Karine wrote via Instagram Story. “As the media showed, I had issues where the police was called because I feared for my life and my son’s life which led me to ask for help and ultimately be rescued from an environment that no longer was healthy for none of us involved in the situation.”

Pierre Staehle Photo
Courtesy of Paul and Karine Staehle/Instagram

She continued, “I’m getting the best help I could ever get and I’m really thankful for all the people involved in it. I also think all the people that worry about me for the support I have had. It have [sic] been a big part of my recovery. Relationships are hard and sometimes it just can’t be fixed anymore. I need this time to organize my thoughts, work on myself and care for my son after everything we have been through in the last year and a half.”

The couple was due in court on August 11 for a hearing regarding the restraining order. While neither Paul nor Karine confirmed a split at the time, they shared cryptic posts hinting that their marriage was over. Shortly after their court hearing, Paul shared a message via Instagram Story confirmed he “regrets” not “keeping [their] marital problems private.” Hinting at their estrangement, Paul added, “I never want to date or remarry to ever feel this pain again.”

The restraining orders were eventually dropped on September 16.

Amid their problems, the pair continued to work on their marriage and welcomed their second child, son Ethan, in February 2021.

’90 Day Fiance’ Alums Paul and Karine Seemingly Split After an Alleged Domestic Violence Altercation 

In December 2021, the couple made headlines when a video surfaced online that appeared to document an alleged domestic violence altercation between them at their home in Kentucky. In the 10-second clip viewed by In Touch, Karine appeared to grab Paul by the hair and grabbed him around his neck before slamming him against the couch. Their eldest son, Pierre, was nearby in the living room during the altercation.

Karine did not immediately respond to In Touch’s request for comment at the time, though she appeared to address the domestic violence allegations via a cryptic Instagram statement.

“Do you know when you’ve tried everything? And when I say everything, it’s everything you can imagine and then some,” she wrote on December 17, according to a screenshot obtained by blogger John Yates. “The night before I spent awake and reflecting on everything I’ve been through and many things, it was for the love of my children and it will always be for them and that will never change. I woke up determined, asked for a divorce, that’s right, divorce. [Now] what will happen to me, I don’t know but God knows. At the moment, I just want the lap of my family and especially my mother, to go back to my house and start my life over…”

She continued, “I’ll be back another day to talk to you… From now on I’m going to vent and say everything, all the commas and drops in the i [sic]. Thank you in advance for your support…”

Shortly after the footage was released, Paul and Karine seemingly confirmed that they had split for good by removing photos of each other on Instagram.

Karine filed a restraining order against Paul on December 30, 2021. In the paperwork, she claimed that she was a victim of rape and domestic violence. However, In Touch exclusively reported that she dropped the restraining order in February 2023.

Do Paul Staehle and Karine Staehle Have Custody of Their Kids?

On June 8, 2022, the Louisville Metro Police Department confirmed to In Touch that the former couple’s eldest son, Pierre, was reported missing. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children put out an alert, mentioning that Pierre may be in the company of his father. 

Following the alarming post, Paul shared a cryptic message on his Instagram Story stating that “grandparents or [a] relative should be allowed to have temporary custody.” The former reality star added, “To ban the grandparents from the children, as well as the natural parents is very sad.” 

90 Day Fiancé blogger John Yates claimed he spoke with Paul and revealed that Paul had previously won full custody of both kids in December 2021.

“Karine called into the courts that Paul was trying to murder her,” John alleged about Paul’s version of events. “When that happened, the judge got pissed off and took the kids away from both Paul and Karine and even Paul’s mom.”

Shortly after Paul’s social media statement, the Kentucky native denied kidnapping his son and called the whole ordeal a “misunderstanding” in July 2022. 

The Louisville Metro Police Department confirmed to In Touch that Pierre was “located and safe” on July 5. The toddler was later placed in the custody of CPS, In Touch was confirmed. Pierre and Ethan were both placed with a foster family. Following their latest court date, the kids were placed with Paul’s mom as he and Karine continue to fight for custody of their kids. 

As the exes continue their custody battle for their sons, Paul seemingly defended Karine after she revealed she rarely gets to see her sons.

The father of two shared a lengthy message about his and Karine’s custody situation in September 2020, claiming the current agreement only allows his ex to see her kids for only one hour, one day a week.

“It is sad Karine has done everything CPS has asked her since December,” he wrote via his Instagram Stories. “Karine works hard at any job she can to earn money. She has lost any government help from food stamps or medical … I have seen other judges allow a mother an opportunity to get their children’s custody back. Our children miss their parents. The termination of our parental and custodial rights without a fair opportunity at reunification.”

On May 24, 2023, Paul revealed via his Instagram Stories that his cousin has custody of Pierre and Ethan and claimed that she “has filed a motion to attempt to keep custody and to remove all Karine and my parental and custodial rights permanently.”

He alleged that the motion requests that Karine’s visitations be terminated and that their sons Pierre and Ethan’s last names be changed. He also claimed that his cousin makes their sons refer to her as “mom” and Karine as her first name.

The motion, which was filed on May 22, 2023, and has been obtained by In Touch, explains that Paul’s cousins have filed to obtain permanent custody of Pierre and Ethan. Their motion is supported by an affidavit submitted by a worker for the Cabinet for Health and Family Services. A copy of the motion has been sent to Paul, Karine and legal representation.

“She is adamant that they have zero future contact with myself, Karine or any of [Karine’s] family,” Paul wrote, claiming that his cousin said that Brazil “is a poor country where they abuse children.”

After noting that Karine has “worked so hard” to gain back custody, the TLC personality explained that his cousin was trying to “keep custody and prevent proper reunification of her and our children” and “completely erase Karine from their life.”

He added that he lost custody of Pierre and Ethan “less than 12 months ago,” though shared a screenshot of legal documents believed to be filed from his cousin claiming that it’s been 15 months.

According to the paperwork, Paul “fails to make sufficient progress toward identified goals as set forth in the court-approved case plan to allow for the safe return of the child to the parent that results in the child remaining in foster care for fifteen (15) of the most recent twenty-two (22) months.”

Are ’90 Day Fiance’ Stars Paul Staehle and Karine Staehle Still Together? 

As the pair continued to work together to gain back custody of their sons, Paul and Karine happened to rekindle their romance. In April 2023, In Touch confirmed they were “officially back together.”

However, that appears to have since changed. On August 31, 2023, Karine revealed via Instagram Stories that Paul had gone missing in Brazil, and although she provided updates on the search for him, she made it clear that she and Paul were not in contact. 

“Just wanted to let ya’ll know that Paul showed up,” she wrote on September 4 after it was revealed that Paul had gotten lost on a boat trip and was rescued in a nearby village. “I have nothing to do with this so don’t send me hate mail, I take no responsibility for this, [Paul’s friend] Iza posted that Paul is fine so ask him what happened before judging him. He and I don’thave contact but [don’t] worry Paul is not dating Iza. Paul is talking to an older member of her family to my knowledge however.”

Likewise, Paul confirmed on his own Instagram Stories after his rescue that he and Iza are “not romantically involved.”

“She is engaged to marry her fiancé. I see and talk to her and her family every day and her and her family help me out a lot. I am very close to her mother and her mother’s sister,” the dad of two wrote.

While Paul and Karine sparked reconciliatory rumors after being spotted at Disneyland in California on October 5, 2023, more than a week later the dad of two confirmed that he and his on-off wife were “not together.”

“She is currently dating several different men to establish which of the men is the best possible fit for her,” Paul wrote via his Instagram Stories on October 14, 2023. “I am talking to an ingenious woman native of Amazonas. We only want a peaceful friendship, we are both tired of our obviously toxic incompatibility.”

Have a tip? Send it to us! Email In Touch at contact@intouchweekly.com.