'The Apprentice' Contestant Accuses Donald Trump of Sexual Abuse: Updated

LOS ANGELES, CA — A former contestant on “The Apprentice” is the latest woman to come forward accusing Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump of sexual abuse.

Summer Zervos, a contestant on season five of "The Apprentice," said Trump twice kissed her on the lips in his New York office in 2007 and groped her breast following a dinner at the Beverly Hills Hotel. Trump issued a statement denying ever meeting Zervos in private, claiming to have only a vague recollection of her.

At a Los Angeles news conference Friday, her attorney Gloria Allred said Zervos came forward after hearing the recent tape of Trump speaking to Billy Bush of "Access Hollywood" in 2005 in which the presidential candidate brags about kissing and groping women without their permission. Zervos, a registered Republican, said she has not filed a lawsuit against Trump because she doesn't want to financially benefit from the experience.

An emotional Zervos told a roomful of reporters about the initial meeting in New York. After she had been fired as a contestant on the show, she met with Trump in hopes the billionaire would offer her work with his company.

"When I arrived he kissed me on the lips. I was surprised, but felt that perhaps that was just his form of greeting," Zervos said. "As I was about to leave he again kissed me on the lips. This made me feel very nervous and embarrassed. This is not what I wanted or expected."

Later, according to Zervos, Trump contacted her in Los Angeles and asked her to meet him at the Beverly Hills Hotel.

"I stood up, and he came to me and started kissing me open-mouthed as he was pulling me towards him. I walked away and I sat down on a chair. He was on a love seat across from me, and I made an attempt at conversation.

"He then asked me to sit next to him. I complied. He then grabbed my shoulder and began kissing me again very aggressively, and placed his hand on my breast. I pulled back and went to another part of the room. He then walked up, grabbed my hand and walked me into the bedroom.

"I walked out. He then turned me around and said, 'Let's lay down and watch some telly telly.' He put me in an embrace, and I tried to push him away. I pushed his chest to put space between us, and I said, 'Come on man, get real.' He repeated my words back to me, 'Get real,' as he began thrusting his genitals. He tried to kiss me again with my hand still on his chest, and I said, 'Dude, you're tripping right now,' attempting to make it clear that I was not interested."

Angry at the rejection, Trump "started saying that he did not think that I had ever known love or had been in love," Zervos added.

Zervos said she met with Trump once more at his golf club in Palos Verdes where he offered her a job at half the salary she had been seeking.

"Mr. Trump, today I feel that you were interested in me only because you wanted to have a sexual relationship with me and for no other reason," she said at the press conference. "However, after hearing the released audio tapes and your denials during the debate I felt that I had to speak out about your behavior. You do not have the right to treat women as sexual objects just because you are a star."

According to Zervos, she told her parents and a friend about Trump's behavior immediately after her meeting with him in New York.

Zervos is the latest in a string of women to accuse Trump of sexual misconduct. Since the Billy Bush tape came out a week ago, more than five women have come forward with allegations of unwanted kissing and groping by Trump. Trump has categorically denied the allegations, calling them a political stunt and orchestrated character assassination.

Trump denies the entire account.

"I vaguely remember Ms. Zervos as one of the many contestants on The Apprentice over the years," he said in a written statement. "To be clear, I never met her at a hotel or greeted her inappropriately a decade ago. That is not who I am as a person, and it is not how I’ve conducted my life. In fact, Ms. Zervos continued to contact me for help, emailing my office on April 14th of this year asking that I visit her restaurant in California."

He went on to suggest that Zervos' allegations and that of the several other women who have come forward are all part of scheme involving the collusion of Hillary Clinton and the media in general.

"I will take my message directly to the American people and bypass the unethical press that wants to see their candidate elected," he vowed.

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City News Service contributed to this report. Photo: Michael Vadon via Wikimedia Commons