Donald Trump's wife might have a secret half-brother in Slovenia that she wasn't even aware of.
Melania Trump is soft-spoken and shy, avoiding the limelight her husband adores. But it turns out Melania has some experience living with men who have big personalities. Her father, Viktor, could be called a kind of Slovenian Donald Trump — complete with being what GQ deems "viciously litigious when it comes to the women in his life":
Back when Viktor was a driver, before he married Melania’s mother, he met a young woman in town named Marija Cigelnjak. They dated for a while, and in September 1964, she told Viktor she was pregnant. According to Cigelnjak's testimony in a lengthy court record, Viktor offered to marry her, but quickly changed his mind, demanding that she have an abortion. This, Viktor said, was because the child was not his. A son was born in May 1965, and three months later, Marija sued Viktor for child support. Viktor continued to deny paternity — going into detail for the court about when he had sex with Marija and the rhythms of her menstrual cycle — prompting the court to order a blood test. Based on its results, the court determined that Viktor was, in fact, the boy's biological father. Viktor fought the order to pay child support all the way to Slovenia's highest appellate court. The courts always ruled in Cigelnjak's favor. [GQ]
The unacknowledged son, Denis Cigelnjak, is now 50. He told GQ that he never reached out to his father or half-sisters because he didn't want to be a bother, and that he never wanted anything from his father or the Trumps. Cigelnjak also said he was fairly certain Melania didn't know he existed.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
When GQ asked Melania about Cigelnjak, she denied the story being true. There was some confusion: After being shown the court documents she said she'd "known about this for years" and that "my father is a private individual. Please respect his privacy."
The secret half-brother is not the only strange family story, either. Read the whole investigation at GQ.
-
Pentagon reporters turn in badges after refusing rulesSpeed Read They refused to sign a restrictive new press policy imposed by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth
-
Supreme Court points to gutting Voting Rights Actspeed read States would no longer be required to consider race when drawing congressional maps
-
Trump says he authorized covert CIA ops in VenezuelaSpeed Read He is also considering military strikes inside the country
-
‘Vile, racist’ leaked chats roil Young RepublicansSpeed Read Leaders of Young Republican groups made racist, antisemitic and violent comments in private chats
-
Trump ties $20B Argentina bailout to Milei votesspeed read Trump will boost Argentina’s economy — if the country’s right-wing president wins upcoming elections
-
News organizations reject Pentagon restrictionsSpeed Read The proposed policy is Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s latest move to limit press access at the Pentagon
-
Trump declares end to Gaza war, ‘dawn’ of new MideastSpeed Read Hamas freed the final 20 living Israeli hostages and Israel released thousands of Palestinian detainees
-
Trump DOJ indicts New York AG Letitia JamesSpeed Read New York Attorney General Letitia James was indicted as Trump’s Justice Department pursues charges against his political opponents
