Sketch, reward aim to ID man who threatened Stormy Daniels in Las Vegas

WASHINGTON — A lawyer for the adult film actress known as Stormy Daniels said Monday he will release a sketch of a man who allegedly threatened the porn star in Las Vegas in 2011 and offer a “significant reward” for information leading to his identification.

Michael Avenatti said his client, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, sat down with a forensic sketch artist recently to produce a rendering of the man who she says threatened her to keep her quiet about an alleged affair with President Donald Trump. The encountered occurred in a Las Vegas parking lot, according to Daniels.

The White House has denied the claims of an affair and the threat in Las Vegas, which were made during an interview broadcast March 25 on CBS’ “60 Minutes.”

Avenatti told CNN’s “New Day” on Monday that a composite sketch of the man who allegedly made the threat would be released Tuesday, and a sizeable reward offered for information that would reveal his identity.

“We are very close (to identifying the man),” Avenatti told CNN. “We need some assistance from the public. We’re going to offer a significant reward to get us over the goal line and I’m confident that we’re going to get there.”

During the “60 Minutes” interview, Daniels said was in a parking lot with her daughter, on the way to a fitness class, when she was approached by the man.

“Leave Trump alone. Forget the story,” Daniels said of the encounter. “That’s a beautiful little girl. It’d be a shame if something happened to her mom.”

The White House dismissed the alleged threat the day after the broadcast.

Raj Shah, the White House deputy press secretary, said “there was nothing to corroborate her claim.”

Asked on Monday whether police were investigating the alleged threat, Metropolitan Police Department spokesman Larry Hadfield said in an email, “We do not have a victim named Stephanie Clifford noted as a victim of a crime.”

Daniels is suing Trump to get out of a non-disclosure agreement she says she signed in which she agreed to remain silent about the alleged affair in exchange of a $130,000 payment.

Last week, Trump told reporters on Air Force One that he had no knowledge of the payment, which was made by his personal lawyer, Michael Cohen, days before the 2016 election.

Following that statement, Avenatti filed a motion in a Los Angeles federal court seeking a deposition from Trump and Cohen. Avenatti posted those documents on Twitter on Monday.

Avenatti also posted a motion opposing private arbitration in the case, which was sought by Cohen.

Cohen, on Twitter, has denied any wrongdoing in the payment made to Daniels.

The FBI raided Cohen’s New York office on Monday and seized records, including some pertaining to Daniels.

A Washington-based lawyer for Cohen, Stephen Ryan, said in a statement after the raid that the federal action was an “unnecessary seizure of protected attorney client communications between a lawyer and his clients.”

Contact Gary Martin at gmartin@reviewjournal.com or 202-662-7390. Follow @garymartindc on Twitter. Review-Journal staff writer Briana Erickson contributed to this report.