Two more women have come forward to allege that they were sexually assaulted by Bill Cosby, thus bringing the total number of accusers to forty.
In a press conference held by attorney Gloria Allred this afternoon, Lili Bernard and Sammie Mays both shared shocking stories about their encounters with Cosby at the height of his fame.
Bernard is an actress who appeared on one episode of The Cosby Show during its final season in 1992.
“After he had won my complete trust and adoration he drugged me and raped me,” Bernard told reporters today.
She claims that after he assaulted her, Cosby accosted her in a threatening fashion:
“As far as I’m concerned, Bernard, you’re dead," Cosby allegedly said to the actress. "Do you hear me? You’re dead, Bernard. You don’t exist, I never wanna see your face again. Now get the hell out of here!"
"I interpreted that as a death threat and feared for my life," Bernard said.
Mays told reporters that she met Cosby when she was working as a journalist in the mid-1980s. She says he invited her to his hotel room for an interview and then offered her a drink that had been drugged.
“The next thing I remember when I awoke, from my state of unconsciousness I seemed to have been drooling, and was sloppily slouched in the chair with barely the edge of my bottom in it,” Mays recounted today.
Mays says that soon after regaining consciousness, she realized that she had been raped.
Three more women accused Cosby of sexual assault last week and told tales that were remarkably similar to the ones tearfully recalled by Bernard and Mays this afternoon.
Cosby denied the allegations through a statement issued by his attorney when the scandal began back in November. Since then, he has been silent on the matter.
Cosby is scheduled to perform his standup comedy routine in Atlanta tomorrow night. The event is expected to be heavily protested.
