A woman told the House Ethics Committee that she saw former Florida congressman and Donald Trump’s choice for U.S. attorney general Matt Gaetz “having sex with a minor” at a party in 2017, her lawyer said.
The woman’s attorney, Joel Leppard, said the woman testified to the House committee in April 2024, according to NBC News. “My client testified to the House Ethics Committee that she witnessed Rep. Gaetz having sex with a minor at a house party in Orlando in 2017,” Leppard said.
Gaetz was the subject of a House Ethics Committee investigation over allegations of sexual misconduct and illegal drug use. The Justice Department last year closed its probe into sex trafficking and obstruction of justice allegations against Gaetz without bringing charges against the Florida Republican. Gaetz has denied wrongdoing in both investigations.
A spokesperson for Gaetz pointed to the Justice Department’s closed investigation when reached for comment by NBC News. “Merrick Garland’s DOJ cleared Matt Gaetz and didn’t charge him,” the spokesperson said. “Are you alleging Garland is part of a cover-up?”
Gaetz abruptly resigned from the House on Wednesday, hours after Trump announced he’d chosen the Florida Republican to be his attorney general. Gaetz’s resignation means the House Ethics Committee, which was reportedly scheduled to release the findings of its own investigation on Friday, no longer had jurisdiction to investigate him.
Whether the committee’s report ever sees the light of day is now a matter of intense debate. House Speaker Mike Johnson has said he will “strongly request” that the committee not release it. But Senate Democrats and some Republicans have said they nevertheless want to see the committee’s findings. Leppard has also advocated for the report’s release. “The American people deserve to know the truth about the person slated to become the top law enforcement officer in the country,” he told NBC News.
Clarissa-Jan Lim is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW. She was previously a senior reporter and editor at BuzzFeed News.
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