Who is Karen McDougal? Alleged Trump affair explained, charges against former President - where is she now?

In a landmark 34-count felony indictment that was unsealed by New York prosecutors, they alleged that former US president Donald Trump engaged in a conspiracy to improperly influence the 2016 election through a series of hush money payments intended to silence criticisms of his campaign.

The allegations stemmed from a string of cheques that Trump or his company sent to his lawyer and fixer during the presidential campaign in exchange for those individuals’ assistance in paying a porn actor who claimed to have had an extramarital relationship with Trump years earlier.

Christopher Conroy, an assistant district attorney, testified in court that the payments were a part of “an unlawful plan to identify and suppress negative information that could have undermined his campaign for president.”

So far, one of the bigger names to have come out of the historic indictment of a former US president is that of Stormy Daniels, but the investigation concerns six-figure payments made to Daniels and former Playboy model Karen McDougal. Both say they had sexual encounters with the married Trump years before he got into politics.

But who exactly is Karen McDougal, and what is her role in the story? Here is everything you need to know.

Who is Karen McDougal?

Born in 1977 in Merrillville, Indiana, Karen McDougal is a former Playboy model who has also modelled for other various magazines and brands.

She gained media attention in 2018 for alleging that she had an affair with then US President Trump in 2006, around the same time that he had an affair with adult film actress Stormy Daniels.

McDougal claimed that she had a 10-month romantic relationship with Trump, which began in 2006 after they met at a party at the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles, where he was recording an episode of The Apprentice. She described the relationship to CNN as loving and consensual.

She said that they had several meetings at hotels and private homes during which they engaged in intimate relations, and saw each other “a minimum five times a month”.

The alleged affair was said to have ended in 2007. Trump has denied the affair. In 2016, McDougal sold the rights to her story about her alleged affair with Trump to American Media, Inc., the parent company of the National Enquirer, for $150,000.

However, the company never published the story, a practice known as “catch and kill.” In 2018, McDougal filed a lawsuit to invalidate the agreement, alleging that she was misled about the terms of the deal and that it was intended to prevent her from speaking publicly about the alleged affair.

McDougal later reached a settlement with the National Enquirer, allowing her to speak freely about her story. McDougal has since been outspoken about her alleged relationship with Trump, and her story has been covered extensively in the media.

American Media Inc has acknowledged that its payments to McDougal were done specifically to assist Trump’s election bid and were made “in concert” with his campaign.

In addition to her modelling career, McDougal is also a fitness enthusiast and has competed in fitness competitions, and has also worked as a television host.