Michael Avenatti denies he got pranked by 4Chan
Michael Avenatti denied rumors that he had been tricked by 4Chan users into representing a fictional woman with allegations against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh. Avenatti locked his Twitter account earlier on Tuesday, making it impossible to retweet any of his tweets.
Avenatti, who is considering a presidential bid in 2020, has said in recent days that he is representing a woman with credible claims of sexual assault against Kavanaugh, who faces allegations of sexual misconduct from two other women, both of which he has vehemently denied.
A 4Chan user posted on Tuesday that his girlfriend had called Avenatti on a burner phone and claimed to be a woman who had been assaulted by Kavanaugh in high school. He claimed that he and his girlfriend also pretended to be another person who could confirm the fictional woman's story. 4Chan is an internet message board which has been linked to the alt-right.
Avenatti told CBS News' Nancy Cordes on Tuesday that the post was false.
"There's nothing wrong! I had to go online to look, and I read this post, and I'm laughing. None of that happened. It's a complete fabrication. There's zero truth to it. When I say zero truth, I mean zero truth. Not a single thing in that is true," he said. Avenatti also said that his client was not having second thoughts about coming forward, saying that she is "remaining strong."
Avenatti tweeted on Sept. 23 that he and his client "will be demanding the opportunity to present testimony to the committee and will likewise be demanding that Judge and others be subpoenaed to testify. The nomination must be withdrawn."
Avenatti has said that his client will be coming forward shortly. Dr. Christine Blasey Ford and Deborah Ramirez have accused Kavanaugh of sexual assault during their high school and college years, respectively.
He said he locked his Twitter account Tuesday "because the bots and Trump trolls are out in full force due to my representation re Kavanaugh. I will change this back as soon as I am able."
Avenatti is also the attorney for Stormy Daniels, the adult film actress suing President Trump for allegedly not signing a nondisclosure arrangement that his lawyer had arranged. Avenatti has become a fixture on cable news, and has openly expressed his interest in running for president.
He has made trips to Iowa and New Hampshire recently, states traditionally visited by presidential candidates.