Tom Sandoval Calls Raquel Leviss ‘Petty’ for Blocking Him (Exclusive)

Tom Sandoval is unimpressed with Rachel “Raquel” Leviss‘s choice to publicly block him on Instagram following their months-long affair.

As the former pageant queen turned 29 on Monday, she took advantage of the occason to reveal she’s cut social media ties with her former Vanderpump Rules costar, who commented on an unrelated Instagram post over the weekend: “Happy Birthday, Rachel, I really hope ur finding peace and happiness. Miss u friend.”

Not long after, Leviss shared an Instagram Story with a screenshot of Sandoval’s Instagram account, which she had blocked, along with a hot pink sticker featuring white writing reading, “OK bye!”

Hours later, PEOPLE caught up with Sandoval while he promoted his latest reality project, season 2 of Fox’s Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test.

“Obviously, I think it’s a little immature and petty,” he said of his ex’s Instagram Story, which she shared six months after their affair ended his nine-year relationship with Ariana Madix and ignited the Scandoval that shocked Bravo fans and will continue to have fallout in season 11 of VPR. “To post that you’re blocking seems a bit thirsty.”

He explained of his comment: “I wanted to just send her some love, let her know that happy birthday, whatever.”

The Schwartz & Sandy’s co-owner continued, “I just kind of feel bad for her, in a way. I don’t understand. I think she’s really struggling with taking accountability for her actions and just wants to point fingers and be mad at everybody else. There were two of us in this situation. We both screwed up.”

Sandoval — whose secret relationship with Leviss became public knowledge in March — went on to say that he wishes Leviss the “best” and that he didn’t reach out to his former lover to “cause any sort of negativity.”

He explained, “I just wanted to be nice and say, ‘Hey, hope you’re having fun. Hope you’re doing well.'”

The TomTom bar co-owner also revealed it was the first time he and Leviss had been in contact in a while, though he did reach out to her publicist “multiple times” while the cast was filming season 11, which recently wrapped production.

“[I did] fill her in with what was happening and what was being said and really kind of kept them in the loop,” he said. “Even though I wasn’t speaking to Raquel or Rachel, I felt it would help her, whether she was coming back or not, but I don’t know.”

Sandoval added, “It sucks. We never had any sort of closure. I had a conversation with her that ended very much in a way of, ‘All right, well, I’ll talk to you in the next few days,’ and that was it.”

Leviss will not return for season 11 of Vanderpump Rules, recently shared that she has a “lot” of regrets and “would do everything differently if I had the chance to go back.” 

“I really just wanna acknowledge that a lot of people were believing in me and I feel like I was a disappointment to those people,” she told Bethenny Frankel on her Just B podcast last month. “I know that there was a lot of trust that was broken between friendships and betrayal that happened.”

She added, “I look back at my actions and I’m disappointed in myself as well. That is not the person that I want to be. I wasn’t happy. I was really hurting.”

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Vanderpump Rules can be streamed in full on Peacock.