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https://scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/2142177/stormy-daniels-releases-sketch-man-she-says United States & Canada
Stormy Daniels releases sketch of ‘thug’ she says threatened her to shut up about Trump – and offers US$100,000 to identify him
The sketch shows a lightly bearded man in his 30s or early 40s with combed-back hair; Daniels said she thought he looked like somebody’s husband and described him as ‘sort of handsome’
The sketch shows a lightly bearded man in his 30s or early 40s with combed-back hair; Daniels said she thought he looked like somebody’s husband and described him as ‘sort of handsome’
Stormy Daniels, the adult film star claims to have had an affair with US President Donald Trump, released a composite sketch on Tuesday of the “thug” she says threatened her in a Las Vegas car park to stay quiet about the relationship.
Stormy Daniels unveiled the image on ABC’s The View. When asked why she was speaking out, she said: “I’m tired of being threatened,” Daniels responded. “I’m done. I’m sorry, I’m done being bullied.”
She said she was threatened to keep quiet about her 2006 tryst with Trump by an unidentified man in a Las Vegas car park in 2011 and did not report the alleged threat at the time because she was scared.
Daniels said that if she had reported the threat at the time, she would have had to reveal the affair, and she “didn’t want my life to turn upside down”.
The picture shows a lightly bearded man in his 30s or early 40s with combed-back hair and wearing a hoodie.
Daniels said she thought he looked like somebody’s husband and described him as “sort of handsome”.
A sketch released by lawyer Michael Avenatti shows a rendering of the man that Stormy Daniels says threatened her in a Las Vegas car park in 2011 to remain quiet about her relationship with US President Donald Trump. Photo: Michael Avenatti via AP
Daniels, whose legal name is Stephanie Clifford, says that she had sex once with Trump in 2006 and that Trump’s personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, paid her $130,000 days before the 2016 election for her silence.
Showing a talent for remaining in the headlines as she seeks to invalidate the nondisclosure agreement, Daniels and her lawyer, Michael Avenatti, have slowly offered more information about the alleged threat over the course of months.
More than a week ago, Avenatti tweeted a photo that he said showed Daniels sitting with a forensic sketch artist.
Avenatti says they are offering $100,000 for information leading to the man’s identification.
After Daniels first said she was threatened, a lawyer for Cohen demanded that Daniels publicly apologise to his client for suggesting that Cohen was involved in her intimidation.
Daniels responded by filing a revised federal lawsuit accusing Cohen of defamation.
The release of the sketch comes as Cohen is threatened by a federal investigation that could reveal the inner dealings of Trump’s long-time fixer and image protector.
A US federal judge on Monday heard debate over what should happen to records, including multiple electronic records, seized from Cohen in a series of FBI raids.
Daniels made an appearance at the hearing, getting swarmed by photographers and nearly falling as she was hustled into the courthouse, a scene that captured the sensational atmosphere around the case.
The proceedings had another unexpected twist when Cohen was forced to reveal that Fox News host Sean Hannity was his client.
Adult film actress Stephanie Clifford, also known as Stormy Daniels, speaks outside the federal courthouse in New York on Monday with her lawyer, Michael Avenatti. Photo: Agence France-Presse
Cohen’s lawyers did not detail the type of legal work he did for Hannity. On his radio show, Hannity said Cohen was never involved in any matter between him and a third party.
Trump answered questions about Daniels for the first time recently, saying he had no knowledge of the payment made by Cohen and adding that he did not know where Cohen had got the money.
The White House has said Trump denies the affair.