Journalist accuses Donald Trump of sexual assault; President terms it ‘fiction’

US President Donald Trump (File Photo: IANS)


A senior journalist has accused US President Donald Trump of sexually assaulting her over 20 years ago.

E Jean Carroll, 75, a television show host and magazine columnist, made the accusation in an essay published on Friday in NY Magazine, the local media reported.

She said the incident happened in a Bergdorf Goodman changing room, in New York, in the mid-1990s.

Trump had greeted her as: “Hey, you’re that advice lady!” to which she replied: “Hey, you’re that real-estate tycoon!”

He then sought her help to buy a gift for a woman.

Both settled on a gift of lingerie, and when he asked her to model it, she jokingly said he must try it on first, a leading media outlet reported.

However, Donald Trump has dismissed allegations that he raped the journalist terming it “fiction”.

The President said he has never met Carroll and the writer’s motivation behind the claim was to “sell a new book”, reported BBC news.

“I’ve never met this person in my life,” the US President said in a statement. “She is trying to sell a new book-that should indicate her motivation. It should be sold in the fiction section.”

Donald Trump has accused the publication of “peddling fake news”.

“Shame on those who make up false stories of assault to try to get publicity for themselves, or sell a book, or carry out a political agenda,” he said.

“It’s just as bad for people to believe it, particularly when there is zero evidence,” he added.

In his statement, Trump thanked Bergdorf Goodman for “confirming they have no video footage of any such incident”.

Carroll, the 16th woman to accuse Trump of sexual assault, wrote that inside the changing room, he had pinned her to the wall.