Tabloid boss testifies to Trump’s plan to bury Playboy model’s affair allegations: ‘The boss will take care of it’

A former tabloid publisher has testified that he agreed to spend tens of thousands of dollars to buy and then bury politically compromising stories about Donald Trump with the assurance that “the boss will take care of it”.

That promise, allegedly from Mr Trump’s then-personal attorney Michael Cohen, gave former American Media Inc chief David Pecker the green-light to pay a former Playboy model $150,000 to buy the rights to her story of an alleged affair, he testified in a Manhattan criminal court on Thursday.

“Don’t worry about it. I’m your friend. The boss will take care of it,” Cohen allegedly told Mr Pecker, apparently referring to Mr Trump.

The details emerged as the former publisher of tabloid giant the National Enquirer returned to the witness stand on Thursday for a third day of testimony during Mr Trump’s historic criminal trial.

The former president is accused of orchestrating a scheme to cover up hush money payments to adult film star Stormy Daniels to silence her about an alleged affair – a scheme which was ultimately for the purpose of influencing the outcome of the 2016 presidential election.

Mr Pecker testified that the plan developed from a “catch and kill” campaign to suppress negative stories about the then-presidential candidate, including his $150,000 payment to former Playboy model Karen McDougal to buy the rights to her story about an affair she claims she had with Mr Trump in 2006.

Mr Trump is charged with 34 felony counts of falsifying business records. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges and denied the affairs.

But the agreement with Ms McDougal appeared to continue to haunt Mr Trump’s campaign and the early months of his administration, when he allegedly called Mr Pecker to the White House