Oksana Grigorieva's lawyers say she walked away from a $15 million deal to destroy tapes documenting Mel Gibson's alleged abusive behavior.

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Oksana Grigorieva, the ex-girlfriend of Gibson and mother of his infant daughter Lucia, has accused the Oscar-winning film star of threatening and assaulting her.

Audio recordings that appear to have captured explosive arguments between the former couple have been leaked online but not been verified as real.

Gibson's representatives have, in turn, accused Grigorieva of extortion.

"The fact that a room full of Mel Gibson's lawyers were willing to pay $15 million for the destruction of the tapes and photographs, proves beyond any doubt that they are real.

Oksana walked away from this deal because she cared about her children," attorney Daniel Horowitz said in a statement.

"Oksana refused to sign the formal agreement because she did not want Mel Gibson to have overnight custody of their child. Having seen the violent nature of his temper she was concerned for the safety of her child as well as herself. Oksana's concerns were always about the safety of her children. She feared that if the recorded threats against her by Gibson were destroyed, she would have no way of proving that there was a very real danger from him, and that it would just be her word against his."