The highly anticipated House Ethics Committee report about former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) has been leaked following an announcement that it would be released to the public on Monday.
The investigation found substantial evidence of alleged statutory rape, solicitation of prostitution, drug use, and other ethical violations. The report alleges that Gaetz paid women, including a 17-year-old girl, for sex and was a frequent user of illicit drugs while serving in Congress.
Investigators claim Gaetz had sexual relations with the teenage girl at a party in July 2017 at a Florida lobbyist’s home who “recalled receiving $400 in cash from Representative Gaetz that evening, which she understood to be payment for sex,” CNN reported after obtaining the leaked document.
The report notes that Gaetz “was unaware that [the teenage girl] was underage ‘until more than a month after their first sexual encounters,” Politico noted.
Gaetz reportedly had sex with the girl twice at the party. One of these instances occurred in front of other party attendees.
The committee indicated it found evidence that Gaetz used cocaine, ecstasy, and marijuana on several occasions between 2017 and 2019. Several witnesses claimed they saw him using these drugs at parties and events. The former lawmaker went so far as to set up a fake email in his House office to buy pot. “At least two women saw Representative Gaetz using cocaine and ecstasy at different events,” Politico reported.
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The Justice Department previously investigated the former lawmaker, but declined to press charges.
Gaetz is also alleged to have paid multiple women for sex, including a dozen women between 2017 and 2020. Many of these “meetings” were organized through a website called SeekingArrangement.com and were facilitated by a former Florida tax collector named Joel Greenberg, who later pled guilty to sex trafficking of a minor, producing a false identification document, identity theft, wire fraud, stalking, and conspiracy.
CNN reported that “Nearly every young woman that the Committee interviewed confirmed that she was paid for sex by, or on behalf of, Representative Gaetz. Another woman who had been paid over $5,000 “told the Committee that ‘99 percent of the time that (Representative Gaetz and I) were hanging out, there was sex involved.
The former lawmaker allegedly violated House rules by accepting inappropriate gifts. These included transportation and lodging during a trip to the Bahamas, where women allegedly agreed to have sex with Gaetz and others to be included on the trip, which was seen as “payment” for sexual activities.
The report accuses Gaetz of obstructing the House Ethics Committee’s investigation by refusing to cooperate and provide the requested documentation. “The Committee concludes that Gaetz’s attempts to mislead and deter the Committee from investigating him implicated federal criminal laws relating to false statements and obstruction of Congress,” according to CNN.
Gaetz filed a last-minute lawsuit against the House Ethics Committee in an effort to prevent the report’s release. His attorneys argue that the committee is overstepping its authority since he already resigned from Congress, meaning that it no longer has jurisdiction over him. They are seeking an emergency order to block the release of the report.
Townhall will provide an update once the report is officially released.
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