Stormy Daniels, the adult film star at the centre of a sex scandal involving Donald Trump, was arrested last night in a strip club in Ohio. According to her attorney, Michael Avenatti, Daniels - whose real name is Stephanie Clifford - was performing on stage when she was arrested for allowing a patron to "touch her in a non-sexual manner".
In Ohio, it is a misdemeanor offence for a nude or semi-nude performer to let someone touch them during their routine unless that person is a family member.
"Just [received] word that my client @StormyDaniels was arrested in Columbus Ohio whole performing the same act she has performed across the nation at nearly a hundred strip clubs," Avenatti tweeted in the early hours of this morning. "This was a setup & politically motivated. It reeks of desperation. We will fight all bogus charges."
"She was arrested for allegedly allowing a customer to touch her while on stage in a non sexual manner! Are you kidding me?" he continued in a second tweet. "They are devoting law enforcement resources to sting operations for this? There has to be higher priorities!!! #SetUp"
Avenatti's claims that the charges against Daniels are politically motivated are obviously very serious, but the attorney maintains that his client is being targeted on account of the allegations she has previously made about Donald Trump.
And it's true that Daniels has certainly ruffled a few feathers with statements she's made in the past.
She famously made headlines at the beginning of this year after claiming that Trump had paid her $130,000 in hush money in order to cover up an affair he had with her back in 2006 - something the president vehemently denies, despite a lot of evidence to the contrary.
What's more, Daniels has previously stated that she has received threats over her allegations against the former businessman.
Avenatti has also done his bit to stir the pot, too, and just yesterday tweeted about the upcoming protest against the president in London.
"Looking forward to being on the @GMB set with Piers Trump, I mean @piersmorgan, on Friday," he wrote. "Promises to be lively. Maybe we can go for a stroll after the show and check out the Trump baby balloon. #FightClub #Basta"
What's more, back in March, he posted a series of tweets implying that he had a sex tape of Daniels and Trump.
Nothing eventually came of the cryptic threat, but the rumour alone was enough to set many people on the warpath for the adult film actress.
In his most recent tweet, the attorney provided an update on Daniels' arrest: "We expect her to be released on bail shortly. We also expect that she will be charged with a misdemeanor for allowing 'touching.' We will vehemently contest all charges."
If found guilty of the misdemeanor, the film star is likely to be liable to pay a fine.
Daniels has an ongoing case against Trump, and is seeking to invalidate the nondisclosure agreement that she signed in October 2016.
