Donald Trump Jr., who testified in the New York fraud trial against his family business Thursday, asked the courtroom sketch artist to make him “look sexy” in her illustrations, she says.
According to the artist, Jane Rosenberg, Trump Jr., who took the stand the same day as his brother Eric Trump, paused to banter with her once he was done testifying. Rosenberg, who was on assignment for Reuters, said former President Trump’s eldest son asked her to create a portrait that would make him “look sexy.”
Trump Jr. pointed to the recently circulating false courtroom drawing of former cryptocurrency CEO Sam Bankman-Fried. According to Trump Jr., the portrait, which was not done by Rosenberg, made Bankman-Fried look like a “superstar.”
“I said, ‘That’s fake,'” Rosenberg said. “It doesn’t look anything like him, doesn’t look anything like Sam Bankman-Fried … and there’s no one in the courtroom drawing that.”
Users on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, have added context to the viral image to let others know it’s “not an actual courtroom sketch of Bankman-Fried.”
The FTX founder was found guilty Thursday evening on charges including wire fraud and conspiracy to commit securities fraud.
The Trump family, meanwhile, faces a lawsuit brought by New York Attorney General Letitia James (D), who claims the family’s business falsely inflated and deflated the value of its assets to receive lower taxes and better insurance coverage.
Both Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump denied any involvement in their father’s financial statements in their testimony Thursday.
“As a trustee, I have an obligation to listen [to] those who are expert — who have an expertise of these things,” Trump Jr. said, The Associated Press reported.
The trial is one several the former president is facing as he mounts his 2024 bid to return to the White House.