Avenatti, in Tweet, Claims Nike Exec Bribed High School Players

(Bloomberg) -- California lawyer Michael Avenatti on Friday made renewed allegations against Nike, 10 days after being charged for trying to extort millions of dollars from the company.

In a series of tweets, Avenatti claimed a Nike executive bribed high school players to play college basketball at schools affiliated with the brand.

Avenatti also claimed senior company executives and many of the colleges knew about the situation but looked the other way. He challenged Nike to deny any payments were made.

Friday’s Twitter allegations follow criticism Avenatti made from a locked Twitter account last week, two days after he was charged by federal prosecutors. He was accused in New York of blackmailing Nike, telling the company he’d cancel a press conference accusing it of making illegal payoffs if he and an unidentified client were paid off.

In California, prosecutors say he stole a client’s settlement and used it to cover expenses.

Read More: Avenatti Charged as U.S. Claims Nike Extortion, Client Theft (3)

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