A week after the last string of sexual-assault allegations against Bill Cosby, two more women have come forward with claims that the comedian drugged and sexually assaulted them. At a press conference called by Gloria Allred on Friday, former Cosby Show actress Lili Bernard said Cosby assaulted her in the early ‘90s, during what he claimed would be a “mentoring session†for her role on the show. “After he had won my complete trust and adoration, he drugged me and raped me,†she said, adding that the comedian later threatened her, “You’re dead, Bernard. You don’t exist. I never want to see your face again.†The alleged rape apparently took place in New Jersey, which has no statute of limitations on sexual assault; Allred claims she and Bernard reported the incident to police in Atlantic City on Thursday.
Bernard was joined at the press conference by writer Sammie Mays, who claimed Cosby drugged and assaulted her after meeting her at a conference in the mid-’80s. She says Cosby invited her back to his hotel room, where he fixed her a strange drink that made her “discombobulated.†When she came to, she says, her bra was pulled to the side, and her belt was buckled more loosely than she remembered. More than 40 women in all have accused Cosby of sexual assault.