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Mike ‘The Situation’ Sorrentino Claims He Tried To Enlist Ex-Trump Lawyer Michael Cohen To Smuggle Chicken For Him In Prison
A representative for Michael Cohen has since denied Sorrentino’s story, calling it "red sauce self-promotional fiction."
More than six months after he was released from federal prison, Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino is opening up about some of his experiences behind bars, including an interaction he said he had with Donald Trump’s former lawyer Michael Cohen on his first day inside.
The 37-year-old Jersey Shore star, who was released from federal prison in September after serving an eight-month sentence, sat down with his castmates in a recent episode of “Jersey Shore: Family Vacation” to answer their questions. After Paul “Pauly D” DelVecchio asked him if there was ever an “emergency lockdown situation,” Sorrentino delved into a story about meeting Cohen.
“The first day Michael Cohen came in, which was the president’s attorney, we had a lockdown because there was drones and helicopters and the funny thing about it was, the most important thing in prison is pretty much food. A lot of the guys will barter,” he began. “They’ll make deals for food, so when Michael Cohen came into prison, I was like ‘Alright. I heard he didn’t eat chicken.’”
“So I went straight up to Michael Cohen and I was like, ‘Listen, Mike. I’m gonna need you to do something for me,’” he continued. "This is his first day. He walked in, you know, he said, ‘Anything Mike! What do you need?’ I said, ‘I’m going to need you to smuggle chicken for me off the main line, give it to me, I’m going to put it into my locker so I get an extra serving, and I’m gonna eat it after I lift [weights].’”
Sorrentino said that Cohen agreed immediately, telling him that it’d be “no problem,” but once the day came around to act, it was a different story.
“Thursday comes around, which is chicken day. Cohen is nowhere to be found,” he said. “And I’m like, ‘Damn. Cohen was chicken on chicken day.’ I saw him a couple hours later, and I was like, ‘Yo man, what happened?’ He’s like, ‘Yo man, they know we’re trying to smuggle chicken.’”
Sorrentino was sentenced to eight months in prison after pleading guilty to tax evasion in January 2018. Following his release last year from the Otisville Federal Correctional Institution in Otisville, New York, he began speaking about his time inside, including detailing his alleged brush with Cohen, as well as being acquaintances with another famous inmate, famed (and shamed) Fyre Festival founder Billy McFarland.
Cohen, who is serving three years for his own tax-related crimes, has since denied Sorrentino’s claims, Page Six reports. A representative for the former attorney told the outlet that Sorrentino’s story is “red sauce self-promotional fiction.”
While Sorrentino’s Cohen experience may be up for debate, Sorrentino did assure his friends that he ate well during his time on the inside, thanks to the connections of “Uncle Nino,” a relative of "Jersey Shore" castmate Vinny Guadagnino’s who is supposedly “pretty connected” — enough so that Sorrentino gained the favor of a “Boston crew” who “controlled the kitchen and made sure” he ate well, Sorrentino said.
Sorrentino also said that he learned some Spanish and Russian in prison thanks to spending time with different inmates.
It’s not the first time the reality TV star has commented on the positive effect being in prison has had on his life. Shortly after his release, he said during his first post-prison interview that he gained a sense of appreciation for his freedom after finally getting out.
“I definitely feel like I'm a changed man,” he said.
