Sources involved in the mediation between Oksana Grigorieva andMel Gibson are scoffing at a newly released photo showing Oksana with a black eye.
According to the sources, the notion that Oksana held back the photo is "absurd." As one source said, "She produced photos of her mouth showing the damage to her veneers, she testified in great detail about the Jan. 6 incident. If she had a black eye she would have said it."
The sources also say, on the financial end, Oksana held every piece of damaging evidence over Mel Gibson's head -- notably the tapes -- and that is what produced a $15 million settlement. One source said, "If there was a black eye it would have been $16 million."
And the sources say the day after the alleged incident Oksana's dentist never made any mention of a black eye -- and two days after the alleged incident the pediatrician she saw also failed to observe a bruised eye.
The sources note something else ... there was an ironclad confidentiality agreement in the settlement -- so it would have been pointless for Oksana to hold anything back because it could never be used again.
President Barack Obama is usually pretty good at handling the tough questions ... but when the ladies on "The View" brought up Mel Gibson this morning, dude looked pretty damn frazzled.
It all went down during a pop culture lightning round on this morning's show -- in which the POTUS admitted that he knew about Lindsay Lohan's jail stint ... and kinda, sorta dissed Snooki.
Sources connected to Oksana Grigorieva tell TMZ that there are "third party witnesses" who will tell L.A. County Sheriff's investigators they saw Mel Gibson punch Oksana on January 6 during the blowout at her home.
The sources say the witnesses have not yet spoken to Sheriff's investigators, but they will come forward soon.
Although the sources would not be specific, it appears at least one of the witnesses is someone who works with Oksana on her music. The sources also say at least one of the third party witnesses saw Mel pull a gun on Oksana on January 6, after he allegedly punched her.
We're told Oksana's 12-year old son Alexander has already spoken with Sheriff's investigators. Sources say during the mediation in May, Oksana said Alexander was hiding under the bed during the January 6 argument.
Sources directly connected with Oksana Grigorieva tell TMZ that she purposely kept at least one key piece of evidence out of play during the mediation with Mel Gibson -- alleged photos of her black eye.
As we first reported, Sheriff's investigators are taking a hard look at the details of that 2-day negotiation because they believe it is relevant to Mel's extortion claim against Oksana -- and her domestic violence claim against Mel.
The source -- who's not a member of Oksana's legal team -- says Oksana never made an issue of the alleged black eye or whipped out pics of it during the mediation because she felt, at that point, that she had more than enough on the table -- for instance, the secretly recorded telephone rant.
There are reports that Oksana suffered the injury to her eye during the Jan. 6 blowout.
Now the obvious question is, why hold anything back? Several sources tell us the intent of the mediation was to lay everything out and then hammer out a deal. Once it was signed all evidence would be confidential, we're told, so any unused ammo would be rendered useless.
The talks ended with Mel's side offering Oksana $15 million -- which she first accepted ... before reneging on the deal.
TMZ has learned Oksana Grigorieva has someone new to handle her public relations -- crisis manager supreme Howard Bragman.
Sources tell us Bragman and Oksana have reached an agreement "in spirit," and that paperwork is being finalized.
Oksana moves quickly -- her last publicist, Steve Jaffe, just jumped ship this morning.
Bragman -- who's worked with the biggest names in Hollywood -- will have his hands full as he steps into the middle of Oksana's ongoing war with Mel Gibson.
Law enforcement sources tell TMZ the L.A. County Sheriff's Department is inquiring about the $15 million dealOksana Grigorieva struck with Mel Gibson during their mediation -- and the mediation is relevant both for Oksana's domestic violence claim and Mel's extortion claim.
Sources say Sheriff's investigators are interested in both the evidence presented during the mediation and the evidence that is notably absent.
For example, there are now reports that Oksana claims to have photographic evidence of a black eye following the Jan. 6 fight. Sources involved in the mediation tell TMZ Oksana never mentioned a black eye nor did she present photos to anyone connected to the mediation. The black eye issue was never raised in any form whatsoever, sources tell TMZ.
Furthermore, we're told, the tapes were the 800-pound elephant in the room that led to the $15 million agreement -- which Oksana later disavowed.
As one source connected with the mediation said, "Oksana and her lawyer pulled out all the ammo they had that would embarrass Mel, and now things are surfacing after the fact that call her credibility into question."
We're told Sheriff's investigators are looking at the mediation both to evaluate Oksana's credibility and to determine if there is evidence of extortion.
Oksana Grigorieva's spokesperson is tapping out of her war with Mel Gibson -- and TMZ has learned money played a big role in his departure.
Depending on who you talk to, Steve Jaffe either quit or was fired from his post as Oksana's PR flack.
We're told there was definitely a money issue -- as in Oksana doesn't have any to pay for Jaffe's services.
Sources close to Oksana say she was not happy with the job Jaffe was doing. We're told Oksana was especially disappointed with how Jaffe handled the extortion allegations Gibson has made against her.
UPDATE: Jaffe wants to make it clear he was not the dumpee saying, "I've never been fired in the 35 years that I have done this." He confirmed that Oksana is short on funds, but says that was not the reason he quit.
Sources close to Oksana tell TMZ that she's prepared to sue Gibson to release a CDs worth of new music that he executive produced and co-wrote.
As we first reported, Mel's not in the mood to sign over his publishing rights on the music because his team believes Oksana's trying to destroy him.
At this point, Mel letting Oksana release a CD and go on a promotional tour would be like Obama letting Kim Jong-Il borrow a
nuclear warhead.
Our sources on both sides, say the music matter will most likely land in court -- or become a high-priced bargaining chip in negotiations for a financial settlement.
Somebody named "Mel" is getting one hell of an offer from a Boston gym ... all because the mystery man seems to have an issue with "stress and anger" -- know anyone who fits that description?
This ad ran earlier this week in Boston Metro ... offering this "Mel" person a free membership for August and September.
We're told the meeting was lengthy and that Mel and his lawyer submitted "physical evidence" -- including emails and texts -- to make a case that Oksana extorted him.
Our law enforcement sources also tell us ... Mel did not discuss Oksana's criminal complaint against him. We're told that was one of the ground rules set by Mel's lawyer.
Gibson does not have to discuss Oksana's claims based on his Fifth Amendment rights against self-incrimination.
