Mark Geragos’ connection to Michael Avenatti: Fame, celebrities and now alleged extortion

Celebrity lawyer Mark Geragos, whose high-profile clients have included Michael Jackson, Scott Peterson, Chris Brown, Colin Kaepernick and Jussie Smollett, is the unnamed co-conspirator in federal prosecutors’ extortion case against Michael Avenatti, according to reports.

The Wall Street Journal first reported that it was Geragos, a trial attorney and CNN contributor, who was identified as “CC-1” in the complaint against Avenatti.

According to the complaint, CC-1 accompanied Avenatti to a meeting with lawyers for Nike on March 19. During that meeting, Avenatti and Geragos threatened to go public with damaging information unless the company agreed to pay the two lawyers millions of dollars and another $1.5 million to the client Avenatti claimed to represent, the Wall Street Journal said.

“A suit and tie doesn’t mask the fact that at its core this was an old-fashioned shakedown,” said Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, during a press conference Monday.

The charges against Avenatti, Stormy Daniels’ former attorney and chief Donald Trump critic who at one time claimed to be aspiring presidential candidate, first came to light after the law firm representing Nike, identified as Boies Schiller Flexner LLP, alerted federal prosecutors to the alleged extortion scheme.

The Nike attorneys allowed investigators to tape their phone calls with Avenatti, who is now in federal custody. The complaint said Avenatti and CC-1 also spoke by phone to lawyers for Nike on March 20, during which Avenatti threatened to take “$10 billion off your client’s market cap … I’m not (expletive) around.”

#MichaelAvenatti charged with engaging in a scheme to extort Nike pic.twitter.com/zxS6vSyavu

— US Attorney SDNY (@SDNYnews) March 25, 2019

As of Monday afternoon, Geragos had not been charged with a crime. However, CNN said in a statement that the trial attorney was “no longer a CNN contributor,” the Hollywood Reporter said. CNN also verified that Geragos was the alleged co-conspirator.

The CNN spokesperson did not say how long Geragos had worked for CNN as a paid contributor. As of Monday, Geragos also had not issued a public statement on the charges against Avenatti, whom he recently represented on domestic violence allegations.

Avenatti also was charged Monday in a separate federal case in California involving allegations of wire fraud and bank fraud. He is accused of misappropriating client funds to cover expenses at his coffee business, which prosecutors in the Central District of California said operates Tully’s Coffee stores in California and Washington.

Both Avenatti and Geragos are known as Los Angeles-based attorneys who like to be in the spotlight, often by representing celebrity clients or clients in high-profile situations, including Avenatti.

Avenatti turned to Geragos to represent him after he was arrested Nov. 14 on allegations of domestic violence involving his girlfriend, actress Mareli Miniutti, the Hollywood Reporter said. Avenatti vehemently denied Miniutti’s allegations. Geragos reportedly intervened on his client’s behalf, with the result that the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office declined to pursue felony charges, the Hollywood Reporter added.

Geragos planned to continue working with Avenatti, advising him on how to deal with the fallout of a Daily Beast story in which Daniels accused Avenatti of going against her wishes to sue President Donald Trump for defamation, the Hollywood Reporter added.

Meanwhile, Geragos was recently busy hunting up another high-profile client: “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett, who is facing 16 felony counts of allegedly orchestrating a homophobic and racist attack in Chicago in late January. People reported last week that Geragos had agreed to represent Smollett, 36.

According to Geragos’ bio on the website for his firm, Geragos & Geragos, the attorney has “represented some of the most prominent figures in the world.”

In addition to Jackson, Brown and Kaepernick, Geragos also has represented former Congressman Gary Condit, former first brother Roger Clinton, Academy Award-nominated actress Winona Ryder, Nicole Richie, Sean “Diddy” Combs and international arms dealer Sarkis Soghanalian.

Bay Area residents may also remember Geragos for representing Modesto fertilizer salesman Scott Peterson, now 46, who was charged with murdering his wife Laci Peterson, 27, and their unborn son on Dec. 24, 2002. Although Geragos was able to get the judge to dismiss several key pieces of evidence, Peterson was eventually convicted of first-degree murder in his wife’s death and second-degree murder for Conner’s death. He was sentenced to die by lethal injection and is currently imprisoned at San Quentin’s Death Row.

In addition, Geragos also represented Barry Bonds’ personal trainer, Greg Anderson, in his case related to the federal investigation into steroid use in professional sports.

More recently, Geragos represented Bulos “Paul” Zumot, the owner of a downtown Palo Alto smoking lounge, who was convicted in 2011 of murdering his girlfriend, Jennifer Schipsi, and torching their cottage. However, Zumot alleged in his appeal of his conviction that Geragos had done a poor job representing him.

As for Kaepernick, Geragos represented him in his collusion case against the National Football League. Kaepernick alleged the league blackballed him after he began kneeling on the field during the national anthem as a form of silent protest.

In February, Geragos announced that it had reached a resolution to collusion grievances filed by both Kaepernick and Carolina Panthers safety Eric Reid, 247sports.com reported.