This story is developing. Refresh for updates.Michael Cohen, President Trump’s longtime attorney and fixer, has reached a plea deal with prosecutors in the Southern District of New York, press reports said.A New York court will hold a proceeding “relevant” to the Cohen case today at 4 p.m., a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s office in the Southern District of New York said Tuesday.The spokesman, Nicholas Biase, declined to be more specific, but mentioned the hearing in response to questions about recent press reports that Cohen has reached a plea deal.The New York Times and ABC News both reported Cohen has already reached a deal with prosecutors. Earlier today, numerous reports suggested Cohen had entered into talks with prosecutors about a possible agreement to plead guilty.The New York Times said the deal concerns payments to women who've alleged sexual relationships with President Trump — but cited two sources saying that the pact does not include a promise to cooperate with federal authorities.Michael Avenatti, the attorney for one of those women, adult film actress Stormy Daniels, said news of the Cohen plea deal was a bad omen for the president. And he criticized Trump’s lawyer, Rudy Giuliani, who has publicly blasted Cohen as a “scumbag.”“Trump is in a lot of trouble,” Avenatti wrote to VICE News in a text message. “He and Giuliani completely misplayed this.”Cohen has turned himself in to the custody of the FBI, CNN reported. The news outlet reported that Cohen’s deal will include jail time.Cohen’s plea deal follows a report in The New York Times over the weekend that prosecutors were investigating Trump’s self-described “fixer” for raising $20 million worth of potentially fraudulent loans from banks.READ: Here’s why Michael Cohen could be Trump’s “biggest vulnerability”Cohen was one of Trump’s closest aides for over a decade. Speculation has raged over what he might be able to tell prosecutors about his former boss if he agreed to cooperate, including possibly with the investigation into Russia’s involvement in the 2016 election now being led by special counsel Robert Mueller.Cover image: Photoillustration by Leslie Xia
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