After enough eccentric headlines to warrant a special episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent, Shaquille O’Neal can finally breathe a sigh of relief now that a judge has dismissed a suit filed by an ex-friend and business associate. A judge threw out Robert Ross’ suit against seven gang members he said kidnapped him in order to retrieve a sex tape featuring the former basketball star.

Ross claimed the tape showed Shaq with multiple women at different times while he was still married to Shaunie O’Neal. Ross said Shaq ordered the seven men to beat him into submission until he returned the alleged recording. However, TMZ reports that in a preliminary court hearing the D.A. told the courtroom they no longer had any confidence in Ross based on recent testimony and his actions outside of court.

The D.A. says they lost confidence in Ross because he admitted that he had lied about having a sex tape. It’s a claim Shaq had made since these allegations first surfaced. Lawyers for the multiple defendants soon asked the judge to immediately dismiss the case, which he did.

(Photo: AP Photo/John Raoux, File)