Miss Universe Contestant Calls for ‘Unbiased, External’ Investigation After Winner Defends Pageant amid Its Many Controversies

Nearly two weeks after Miss Universe crowned its 2025 winner, one contestant is calling further attention to the international pageant organization in response to the series of controversies that led up to the event.

In an open statement shared with PEOPLE, Melissa Sapini — who represented Haiti at the competition in Bangkok on Nov. 21 — publicly calls for an independent, external investigation into allegations against the pageant.

Sapini’s announcement follows Miss Universe winner Fátima Bosch’s ABC News interview, which aired on Tuesday, Dec. 2. During her discussion with Nightline anchor JuJu Chang, Bosch defended the pageant; however, Sapini, 22, opens her latest statement by separating her call to action from Bosch, 27.

“Let me be clear: this is not about Fátima. This is about protecting the women who cannot safely speak for themselves. I am speaking out because the organizers continue to provide excuses instead of answers,” Sapini begins. “Representing Haiti is the greatest honor of my life. But this moment is bigger than a crown. The world is watching. The narrative being pushed right now threatens the future and the integrity of Miss Universe.”

“Jokes about social media followers and Walmart crowns will not distract from the serious allegations we are raising,” she states, referring to a comment made by Bosch in response to claims her father rigged the results: “How are you going to buy a crown? Maybe in Walmart you can buy a crown, yeah. But not in Miss Universe for sure,” Bosch said on ABC.

Sapini’s statement then refers to the first controversy that landed Miss Universe a place in global headlines, when a livestream showed a heated confrontation between pageant executive Nawat Itsaragrisil and Bosch on Nov. 4.

“As for Nawat’s behavior, I was in that room. We all heard what he said. Claiming it was a misunderstanding is insulting to every multilingual woman in the competition. To blame a language barrier is outrageous. His crocodile tears were dramatic, not honest,” Sapini says. “Now, he’s attempting to silence Fátima with fabricated criminal charges. When will this man stop?”

Several outlets reported that Itsaragrisil called Bosch a “dumbhead” during their confrontation; a representative for Miss Grand International (MGI), the pageant organization that Itsaragrisil is also the president of, issued a comment to PEOPLE responding to the allegation.

“Miss Mexico wrongly claimed that Mr. Nawat called her ‘dumbhead,’ when he actually said ‘damage.’ Video evidence is available. She has never corrected the false accusation, which caused significant reputational harm to Mr. Nawat and triggered a series of escalating issues throughout the 74th Miss Universe event,” the MGI representative said.

Neither MGI, Itsaragrisil nor Bosch have replied to PEOPLE’s request for comment regarding the defamation complaint Itsaragrisil filed against Bosch, as shared on the official Miss Universe Thailand Facebook page.

Sapini continues, “Respecting Fátima’s experience doesn’t mean ignoring our own. Anyone who has competed knows: what happens backstage is just as important as what happens on stage. Right now, only the stage story is being told.”

“Having Miss Universe defend Miss Universe is like asking a police department to investigate itself — it will never produce the full truth,” concludes Sapini’s statement. “That is why we need an independent investigation — unbiased, external, and transparent.”

Prior to her participation in Miss Universe, Sapini reigned as Miss Massachusetts USA and competed at Miss USA 2024. Shortly after her return from Thailand, where she spent three weeks leading up to the competition, she spoke to PEOPLE and detailed her experience, which she described as completely “unheard of” in the world of pageantry.

“Every single day, there was something. Every single day, there was whispers between girls of, ‘Okay, is this weird to you? Am I going crazy?'” she recalled. “There were so many red flags from the beginning.”

Sapini told PEOPLE that the viral altercation between Bosch and Itsaragrisil marked the first time “things started to feel really off.”

Shortly after the livestream became worldwide news, Miss Universe owner Raul Rocha announced multiple sanctions against Itsaragrisil, including his restriction from the pageant. However, Sapini later claimed that the contestants regularly saw the pageant executive in the following weeks.

A representative for MGI told PEOPLE in an email statement that, because Itsaragrisil is the “CEO of MGI and the official Host President and primary investor of the 74th Miss Universe competition,” he “is obligated to oversee all host-related activities” and that, “as host, Mr. Nawat had to represent MGI at all venues. Although Raul publicly claimed restrictions, such limitations were never realistic nor enforceable. Ultimately, MUO acknowledged the situation and resumed proper cooperation.”

Just three days before the actual pageant, musician Omar Harfouch publicly dropped out of the pageant selection committee and posted multiple allegations of judging misconduct on social media.

Harfouch claimed that the organization formed an “impromptu jury” to choose 30 finalists before participants from 136 countries even took the stage for the preliminary round; the Miss Universe Organization denied his allegations in a statement posted shortly after his resignation.

After Harfouch’s bombshell announcement on Nov. 18, soccer player Claude Makélélé announced he was also withdrawing from his position as a judge, citing personal reasons. The president of the selection committee, Princess Camilla di Borbone delle Due Sicilie, also resigned.

Between the first incident involving Itsaragrisil until — and after — Bosch’s crowning, Sapini told PEOPLE that she was consistently unnerved by the conditions of the competition.

“Another moment where I was scared is when contestants started to get sick,” the New Englander told PEOPLE exclusively in her first interview following the pageant. “So many girls were hospitalized. Girls were dropping like flies, left and right.”

She remembered how pageant group chats were filled with messages from contestants claiming that they were suffering from debilitating flu symptoms and food poisoning. She said pageant leadership did respond to some sick contestants’ requests for help, but Sapini claimed the aid was generally limited to chaperones advising women to either visit on-site medical personnel or check into the hospital.

The staff allegedly did not, however, take action to address some of the more preventable illnesses, like food poisoning.

“They were just giving us these box lunches that were making people sick,” claimed Sapini, who is one of several contestant who have since spoken out against the pageant. “They were not talking about, ‘Okay, everyone’s getting sick. We’re going to do this to change the food, or what have you. That scared me.'”

A representative for MGI told PEOPLE that, “as the Host, MGI follows strict standards for food management based on our extensive experience in pageant operations.”

“Contestants are required to submit their health conditions and dietary restrictions in advance,” the representative said. “A number of contestants did not provide this information, making it impossible for us to prepare special meals in time.”

Continuing on, the representative clarified, “We repeatedly requested this information from MUO, but MUO could not provide it. In such cases, immediate on-site solutions were applied.”

The Miss Universe Organization has not replied to PEOPLE’s request for comment regarding MGI’s claim.

Addressing medical care available to contestants throughout the duration of the pageant, the MGI representative also said, “Throughout the event, chaperones consistently assisted all contestants, and a full medical team was available at all times.”

Upon hearing about Harfouch’s allegations and the following resignations, Sapini said she and other contestants had discussions about leaving Thailand altogether, even though the pageant was days away. She started to really question her reasons for competing upon seeing the news that a third judge had dropped out.

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“I just remember standing there looking at my phone and just being so sad. I can’t even describe it to you. I dedicated my life to this organization,” Sapini shared. “I watched this [pageant] on TV when I was 16, and I remember the Miss Universe who won that year preaching to the audience and anyone who was watching, ‘This could be you. Do what you can to be a leader,’ preaching women’s empowerment.”

She continued, “And I remember that it changed the trajectory of my life. Six years later, it happened for me. I got to compete at Miss USA as Miss Massachusetts. I’m here at Miss Universe as Miss Haiti. I’ve dedicated so much to this, and for all of that to just come crumbling down.”