Washington D.C. is hot anticipating a new Trump - Qatar scandal this week, after photos were posted on Twitter Sunday by attorney Michael Avenatti, who is representing porn star Stormy Daniels in a lawsuit against Michael Cohen, U.S. President Donald Trump’s former personal lawyer, Haaretz reported.
The photos show Ahmed al-Rumaihi, a former Qatari diplomat in the United States and the current head of Qatar Investments - a division of the world’s largest sovereign investment fund - entering an elevator in Trump Tower on Dec. 12, 2016. The visit happened five days after news broke of the multibillion-dollar sale of 19.5 percent of the Russian oil giant Rosneft to Qatar Investments.
The Intercept further fueled the scandal Wednesday by publishing revelations from al-Rumaihi - whom they reportedly had been interviewing since March. Ryan Grim writes that al-Rumaihi claims Cohen asked him for a fee of $1 million for his services amid a conversation about a potential Qatari investment in U.S. infrastructure.
Cohen responded to The Intercept denying the claim he had sought payment from al-Rumaihi. “These falsehoods and gross inaccuracies are only being written in the hopes of maligning me for sensationalistic purposes. The truth will prevail and will ultimately be proven in court and not by pundits,” Cohen replied via text message. Grim notes that al-Rumaihi’s story “is the first detailed account from the other side of the table.”
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