MIAMI: Former US President Donald Trump has urged a federal judge to speed up the deposition of media mogul Rupert Murdoch in a $10 billion defamation lawsuit.
Trump’s legal team cited Murdoch’s age and health concerns as reasons for urgency.
“Murdoch is 94 years old, has suffered from multiple health issues throughout his life (and) is believed to have suffered recent significant health scares,“ Trump’s attorneys stated in a court filing.
They argued that these factors could prevent Murdoch from testifying in person during the trial.
The lawsuit stems from a Wall Street Journal article linking Trump to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
The report claimed Trump wrote a suggestive birthday letter to Epstein in 2003, featuring a naked woman and hinting at a shared “secret.” Trump denies the letter’s existence.
Epstein, who died in prison in 2019, was accused of sexually exploiting underage girls. The case fueled conspiracy theories, particularly among Trump’s supporters, about an alleged network of powerful figures involved in abuse.
Meanwhile, Ghislaine Maxwell, Epstein’s associate, is seeking to overturn her 2021 sex trafficking conviction.
Her lawyer argues that a 2008 plea deal involving Epstein should have shielded her from prosecution.
The Justice Department has opposed Maxwell’s appeal, but a recent meeting between her and a senior official has raised questions.
Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, who once represented Trump, has not disclosed details of the discussion. - AFP
