Prosecutors allege celebrity attorney Michael Avenatti may have violated the conditions of his temporary release from jail, CNN reports.
In a Sunday filing, prosecutors with the U.S. attorney's office for the Central District of California claim that Avenatti used his friend’s computer to access the internet.
Avenatti was released from the Metropolitan Correctional Center in New York for 90 days due to the coronavirus outbreak. During his release, he is not permitted access to the internet.
Prosecutors allege that Avenatti has been using his friend Jay Manheimer’s computer to access the internet and write five filings in his case. Avenatti was released from jail to stay with Manheimer in Los Angeles.
Prosecutors indicated that they conducted a review of the court filings that list Manheimer as the “author.”
"The government believes that defendant has likely violated the conditions of his temporary release by using his third-party custodian Jay Manheimer's internet-accessible computer to draft his last five filings in this case. At a minimum, defendant and his counsel have not been candid with this Court," prosecutors wrote in the 33-page filing.
Avenatti’s lawyer Dean Steward wrote in a court filing that the government’s report was “inaccurate.”
Prosecutors said they compared the recent court filings with ones submitted earlier before Avenatti was released from jail. Those filings, prosecutors say, have metadata indicating they were written by a different person than Manheimer.
Prosecutors asked the judge for permission to search Manheimer's house and computer and to allow him to be questioned under oath.
Avenatti recently told a judge that he needs access to a computer to prepare for trial, according to CNN. If the judge finds Avenatti is in violation of the terms of his release, he could be sent back to jail.
Avenatti is currently awaiting sentencing in a case where he was convicted of attempting to extort in excess of $20 million from Nike. He is also facing another trial in New York on charges that he defrauded adult film star Stormy Daniels of book proceeds and a trial in Los Angeles on charges that he defrauded clients and others of millions of dollars.
A judge revoked his bail in one of the cases earlier in the year after finding Avenatti violated the terms of the agreement.
© 2025 Newsmax. All rights reserved.