Five
women have come forward to accuse Donald Trump of trying to touch them
inappropriately without their consent.
The New York Times spoken with two women who say they were victims of
the Republican nominee in two separate incidents that took place in 1980 and
another in 2005.
Those
allegations were then followed by ones from the Palm Beach Post and People
Magazine, while Yahoo News republished an accusation made earlier this
year.
Trump's
campaign denied the accusations, saying they are 'fiction' and 'completely
false'.
His
former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski also raised questions about the
validity of the allegations, before trying to compare Trump's alleged abuse to Hillary Clinton's work as a lawyer
when she defended a rapist.
Trump's
legal team also appeared to hit back against the claim, sending the New York Times
a letter demanding a retraction.
'Your
article is reckless, defamatory and constitutes libel per se. It is apparent
from, among other things, the timing of the article, that this is nothing more
than a politically-motivated attempt to defeat Mr Trump's candidacy,' it reads.
Meanwhile,
two sources in Trump's campaign told DailyMail.com a lawsuit against the Times
is already being drafted. One of those sources, a senior campaign aide, said
the Republican nominee for president
is going to 'war' against the newspaper.
Number
one: Jessica Leeds (above on Wednesday) said that Trump 'grabbed her breasts
and tried to put his hand up her skirt' on a flight more than three decades ago
‘He was like an octopus,' Leed (above) told the Times. 'His hands were
everywhere.'
The
second woman the New York Times claims was touched inappropriately by Trump is
Rachel Crooks (pictured)
Crooks
(right) was a 22-year-old working as a receptionist at Bayrock Group, a real
estate company based in Trump Tower in Manhattan, when she says Trump kissed
her on the mouth without permission while in an elevator
The fifth woman to claim Trump acted inappropriately towards her was Cassandra Searles (pictured), a former Miss USA contestant
Jessica
Leeds, a 74-year-old former businesswoman who lives in Manhattan, was the first
woman featured in the New York Times story.
Leeds
told the newspaper she was 'assaulted' by Trump on a flight when she was 38.
The
74-year-old explained how she was sat beside the Republican nominee in first
class, when he lifted the arm-rest between then and allegedly began touching
her.
'He was like an octopus,' she told the Times. 'His hands were everywhere.'
Leeds,
who told the newspaper the incident 'was an assault', said she rushed to the
back of the plane to escape Trump's advances.
The
second woman the newspaper claims was touched inappropriately by Trump is
Rachel Crooks.
DONALD TRUMP'S CAMPAIGN STATEMENT DENYING THE
ALLEGATIONS
This
entire article is fiction, and for the New York Times to launch a completely
false, coordinated character assassination against Mr Trump on a topic like
this is dangerous.
To reach
back decades in an attempt to smear Mr Trump trvializes sexual assault, and it
sets a new low for where the media is willing to go in its efforts to determine
this election.
It is
absurd to think that one of the most recognizable business leaders on the
planet with a strong record of empowering women in his companies would do the
things alleged in this story, and for this to only become public decades later
in the final month of a campaign for president should say it all.
Further,
The Times story buries the pro-Clinton financial and social media activity on
behalf of Hillary Clinton's candidacy, reinforcing that this is truly nothing
more than a political attack. This is a sad day for the Times.'
Jason
Miller, Senior Communications Advisor
Crooks
was a 22-year-old working as a receptionist at Bayrock Group, a real estate
company based in Trump Tower in Manhattan, when she says Trump kissed her on
the mouth without permission while in an elevator in 2005.
'It was
so inappropriate,' Crooks told the New York Times. 'I was so upset that he
thought I was so insignificant that he could do that.'
Crooks
told the newspaper the incident took place after she shook hands with Trump in
an elevator and he allegedly refused to let go. She says he then began kissing
her on the cheeks, before then kissing her lips.
Three
women have claimed Donald Trump tried to touch them inappropriately without consent
Trump's legal team fired off a letter to the New
York Times accusing them of libel (above)
Trump
furiously denied the allegations when approached by a journalist for the Times.
'None of
this ever took place,' he shouted at the reporter, according to the paper,
before telling the journalist they are a 'disgusting human being'.
The third woman to accuse the Republican nominee told her story to the Palm Beach Post, saying she was groped by Trump 13 years ago at his Mar-a-Lago mansion.
Mindy
McGillivray, 36, told the newspaper Trump grabbed her backside after she helped
a photographer who was covering a concert at Trump's Palm Beach manor.
McGillivray,
who was 23 at the time, said she was with Ken Davidoff at the Mar-a-Lago on
January 24, 2003.