Former Miss Universe on accusations she was murder accomplice: 'Everybody has a past. I'm not a saint girl'

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Alicia Machado

Screenshot/CNN

The former Miss Universe referenced in this week's presidential debate by Hillary Clinton did not deny on Tuesday accusations that she'd been an accomplice to a 1998 murder in Venezuela.

Machado, a vocal critic of Donald Trump for derogatory comments she claims he made about her weight years ago, was confronted with the accusations on CNN.

"There are reports that Trump surrogates tonight have been referencing and pointing to on CNN and elsewhere about an incident in 1998 in Venezuela, where you were accused of driving a getaway car from a murder scene. You were never charged with this," CNN anchor Anderson Cooper said.

Cooper continued: "The judge in the case also said you threatened to kill him after he indicted your boyfriend for the attempted murder. I just want to give you a chance to address these reports that the Trump surrogates are talking about."

Machado didn't deny the accusations.

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"You know, I have my past," she said. "Of course, everybody has a past. I'm not a saint girl. But that is not the point now."

The former Miss Universe continued: "He can use whatever he wants to use. The point is, that happened 20 years ago."

Trump's public feud with Machado came up at the first presidential debate Monday night.

"One of the worst things he said was about a woman in a beauty contest," Clinton said. "He loves beauty contests, supporting them and hanging around them. And he called this woman 'Miss Piggy.' Then he called her 'Miss Housekeeping,' because she was Latina. Donald, she has a name. Her name is Alicia Machado."

Watch the clip below:

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