Six witnesses say sex assault allegations against Trump are true

Six people have come forward to support People magazine writer Natasha Stoynoff's story that she was sexually assaulted by Donald Trump in 2005.

All have gone on the record in a new piece sharing their details about conversations with Stoynoff in the hours and days after the alleged incident.

Canadian journalism professor Paul McLaughlin, who taught Stoynoff, said she called him in tears asking for advice about the incident the day it happened. But he advised her not to say or do anything for fear Trump would litigate.

The writer's long-time friend Marina Grasic said she received a call from Stoynoff the day after. The writer shared all the details of the encounter — including that Trump arrived unannounced at the writer's massage appointment the following day.

"Beyond just the attack, she was horrified by the vulgar circumstances under which she was attacked and propositioned to have an affair," Grasic told People. "Natasha was also struggling about not hurting pregnant Melania if the story came out."

Stoynoff's account appeared in People Magazine last week after a video out-take emerged of Trump joking about sexually assaulting women in a 2005 Access Hollywood interview. That same year Stoynoff interviewed Trump and his wife Melania at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida ahead of their first wedding anniversary.

During a break in the interview, when Stoynoff was alone in a room with Trump, he "shut the door behind us. I turned around, and within seconds he was pushing me against the wall and forcing his tongue down my throat," she wrote.

The witnesses are speaking out a day after Melania appeared in a television interview on CNN to denounce at least nine women now accusing the Republican presidential candidate of sexual assault.

She dismissed Stoynoff's account and said she would not recognise the writer if she ran into her. However, witness Liza Herz said she remembers being at a chance meeting between the two women in New York. Melania Trump "chatted in a friendly way" with Stoynoff, Herz said, and even asked "how come we don't see you anymore?"

Trump's attorney, Michael Cohen, appeared on CNN yesterday (18 October) and said the allegations couldn't be true because "these aren't even women he'd be attracted to".

During a campaign rally last Friday (October 14) Trump railed against the women and said eyewitnesses "already debunked" the People magazine story. He spoke at length about the article.

"As you have seen, right now I am being viciously attacked with lies and smears," he said, adding that the reason Stoynoff didn't write about it 11 years ago is because "it's a lie".