Donald Trump’s personal lawyer arranged for a $1.6m payment to a Playboy playmate in 2017 to keep secret her sexual relationship with a top Republican fundraiser and ally of Trump, a person familiar with the matter said.

Michael Cohen, whose home and office were raided this week by FBI agents searching in part for information about payoffs to women alleging sexual encounters with Trump, handled the matter on behalf of the fundraiser, Elliott Broidy, the person said.

The person, who spoke on condition of anonymity, was confirming a Wall Street Journal report.



Broidy, a 60-year-old venture capitalist from Los Angeles, told the Republican National Committee chairwoman, Ronna McDaniel, on Friday afternoon that he was resigning his position as deputy finance chair immediately, an RNC official familiar with the discussion said. The official requested anonymity to discuss a private phone call between McDaniel and Broidy.

In a statement, Broidy acknowledged that he had a relationship with a Playboy model and offered to help her financially after she told him she was pregnant. The woman’s name has not been made public and the source declined to disclose it.



“She alone decided that she did not want to continue with the pregnancy and I offered to help her financially during this difficult period. We have not spoken since that time,” Broidy said in the statement.

Broidy said Cohen contacted him after being contacted by the woman’s attorney, Keith Davidson. Broidy said he retained Cohen because Cohen had a prior relationship with Davidson.

Cohen and Davidson did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The first court hearing resulting from the Cohen raids was held in New York on Friday.