INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
It is claimed Cohen received $500,000 from a billionaire in the months after the 2016 US election
(File)WASHINGTON: The lawyer for adult-film star Stormy Daniels, who says she was paid $130,000 by Michael
Cohen, the longtime attorney for US President Trump, to stay quiet about a sexual encounter with Trump, on Tuesday claimed that Cohen
received $500,000 from a Russian billionaire in the months after the 2016 US election.In a tweet and report released on Tuesday, Daniels'
attorney Michael Avenatti said a company controlled by Viktor Vekselberg, a businessman with ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, sent
the payment to Cohen.Reuters could not immediately verify the claim and it was not clear how Avenatti would have knowledge of any payment
Cohen and Avenatti did not immediately respond to requests for comment from Reuters.Avenatti said Vekselberg and his cousin, Andrew
Intrater, made eight transfers to Cohen between January and August 2017 through a company called Columbus Nova LLC for a total of
$500,000.Columbus Nova is an U.S
investment arm of Renova Group, a conglomerate controlled by Vekselberg
Both Vekselberg and Renova were hit last month by U.S
sanctions for suspected meddling in the 2016 U.S
election and other alleged "malign activity.Vekselberg and Intrater could not be immediately reached for comment
An executive at Columbus Nova did not immediately respond to a request for comment.The New York Times reported last week that Vekselberg was
questioned by agents working for Special Counsel Robert Mueller earlier this year, as part of their investigation into Russian interference
elections.Avenatti also said he discovered four payments of just under $100,000 each by drugmaker Novartis to Essential Consultants, the
same company used by Cohen to make payments to Daniels
Novartis did not immediately respond to a request for comment.ATT Inc confirmed another series of payments disclosed by Avenatti, who said
the telecommunications giant made four payments of $50,000 each to Essential Consultants."Essential Consultants was one of several firms we
engaged in early 2017 to provide insights into understanding the new administration
They did no legal or lobbying work for us, and the contract ended in December 2017," ATT said in a statement.© Thomson Reuters 2018(This
story has not been edited by TheIndianSubcontinent staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
