Staffers at an American tabloid claim they were told not to pursue a tip alleging the existence of an illegitimate child born to Donald Trump and a housekeeper at one of his properties, despite the magazine paying US $30,000 to the story’s source.
Four veteran National Enquirer workers say that in 2016 they were pressured to quit investigating a claim put forward by Dino Sajudin, a former doorman at Trump World Tower, that Trump had fathered a lovechild with an unnamed staff member in the late 1980s.
Speaking under condition of anonymity to the Associated Press, the National Enquirer staffers say it was highly unusual for their publication to shell out that much cash for the exclusive rights to a potentially massive report, only for higher-ups to call off the investigation before its completion.
The tabloid’s actions have raised suspicions that Sajudin was locked into the non-disclosure agreement not to secure exclusive rights to a potential bombshell report, but to ‘catch and kill’ the story and prevent any potential ramifications to Trump’s presidential campaign.
News of the payment has raised questions about the potential motives of avowed Trump supporter David Pecker, who leads The National Enquirer’s publisher American Media Inc. Another facet of the deal has drawn attention: Sajudin’s contract with the National Enquirer also included a clause subjecting him to a seven-figure fine for taking the allegation to a competing outlet.
Speaking to The New Yorker, one staffer claimed “there’s no question it was done as a favor to continue to protect Trump from these potential secrets. That’s black-and-white.”
Dylan Howard, a senior editor at The National Enquirer, disputed claims his publication spiked the story. He told the Associated Press investigations were dropped after they established Sajudin’s story was not credible, calling the doorman “one fish that swam away.”
A spokesperson from the Trump Organizaion has denied the story outright.
The woman involved in the scandal told the Associated Press last August that “this is all fake” and “I think they lost their money.” The alleged child of Trump declined to discuss the matter with the Associated Press and The New Yorker; both publications say they were unable to establish if she is indeed Trump’s child.
Upon hearing word that his contract had been exposed to the press, Sajudin stuck by his story.
The former TT doorman stands by his story of Trump’s alleged affair. pic.twitter.com/QkY8RBfYnB
— Sonia Moghe (@soniamoghe) April 12, 2018
The saga seems in keeping with previous reports of ‘catch and kill’ scenarios involving the Trump campaign, most notably the claim from former Playboy model Karen McDougal that the National Enquirer’s parent company paid her US $150,000 to shut up about her alleged affair with Trump.
Wild times.
