By JENNIFER MILLMAN
NBC New York
A friend of the underage runaway who accused Giants’ legend Lawrence Taylor of rape allegedly told investigators the teen victim bragged about making money without actually having sex, according to published reports.
The shocking revelation, if true, could help Taylor fight statutory rape charges against him and support the argument his lawyer has made since Taylor’s arrest in Rockland County: Nothing illicit happened.
The 16-year-old runaway allegedly made the statement when she returned to a car waiting for her outside the Holiday Inn where she accused Taylor of attacking her.
The friend, who traveled with the teenager to meet Taylor that evening, said that the prostitute immediately said upon her return that the football great paid her $300 for sex, which was strange, because they didn’t have any – oral or otherwise. He just touched himself.
“When she got back in the car, she wasn’t mad or anything like that,” the friend told investigators, according to the Daily News. “She was like, ‘Wow’ – she got paid $300 and didn’t have to have sex with him.”
Taylor’s lawyer, Arthur Aidala, didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment, but the friend’s alleged claim could damage the prosecution’s case and, potentially, knock down the third-degree rape charge against Taylor that carries up to four years in jail.
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The friend stepped forward to exonerate Taylor because of “three things: they didn’t have sex, she’s lying, and he’s innocent,” a source that revealed the latest developments in the investigation told The New York Post.
Previously, the alleged victim insisted she and Taylor had had sex and said that anything to the contrary from Taylor’s camp was a lie. The troubled ex-linebacker also copped to paying a prostitute for sex, according to a criminal complaint.
Taylor was charged last week with third-degree rape and patronizing a prostitute. His lawyer has repeatedly maintained his client’s innocence, but added this week that there had been no sex at all.
Meanwhile, the weight-loss company NutriSystem Inc. says it has dropped LT as a spokesman because of the charges.
Company spokeswoman Susan McGowan said Friday that the company was shocked at the allegation that Taylor had sex with a 16-year-old runaway and decided to sever the relationship.
McGowan, speaking from company headquarters in Horsham, Pa., said Taylor had been a spokesman for NutriSystem advertising and public relations since April 2009 and had lost 35 pounds to 250. She said he had been used heavily on national TV.
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