Woman testified to House Ethics Committee that Gaetz had sex with her when she was 17: Sources

The pistillate who was astatine the halfway of a yearslong Justice Department probe into enactment trafficking allegations surrounding Rep. Matt Gaetz testified to the House Ethics Committee that the now-former Florida congressman had enactment with her erstwhile she was 17 years old, sources acquainted with the probe told ABC News.

President-elect Donald Trump announced Wednesday that Gaetz had been tapped to service arsenic lawyer general, overseeing the precise subdivision of authorities that antecedently conducted its ain probe of him, which ended past twelvemonth without charges being brought.

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Gaetz resigned from bureau pursuing Trump's announcement. This came arsenic the House Ethics Committee was successful the last stages of its investigation, said sources, who added that the committee was preparing to conscionable this week to deliberate implicit whether to merchandise a last study connected the matter.

Over the summer, the House Ethics Committee subpoenaed the pistillate astatine the halfway of the probe -- who is present successful her 20s -- and she sat for aggregate days of grounds wherever she testified to the committee that Gaetz had enactment with her erstwhile she was a insignificant successful precocious school, sources adjacent to the probe said.

The Justice Department had spent years probing the allegations, including allegations of obstruction of justice, earlier informing Gaetz past twelvemonth that it would not bring charges.

Gaetz has agelong denied immoderate wrongdoing related to the Justice Department probe. In September, helium released a elaborate effect to questions sent to him by the House Ethics Committee, which has been investigating allegations of alleged intersexual misconduct and illicit cause use, reiterating his denial of the allegations.

"Your correspondence of September 4 asks whether I person engaged successful intersexual enactment with immoderate idiosyncratic nether 18. The reply to this question is unequivocally NO. You tin use this effect to each mentation of this question, successful each forum," Gaetz said successful a connection posted to his societal media account.

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The woman's allegation regarding Gaetz became portion of the probe pursuing claims by erstwhile Seminole County taxation collector Joel Greenberg, a erstwhile person of Gaetz, who is presently serving an 11-year situation condemnation aft reaching a woody with investigators successful May 2021 successful which helium pleaded blameworthy to aggregate national crimes, including enactment trafficking of the pistillate erstwhile she was a insignificant and introducing her to different "adult men" who besides had enactment with her erstwhile she was underage.

According to Greenberg's plea deal, the woman, who ABC News is not identifying, met Greenberg online successful 2017 and began gathering him successful hotels and houses successful the Middle District of Florida, wherever helium "introduced the Minor to different big men, who engaged successful commercialized enactment acts with the Minor successful the Middle District of Florida," tribunal documents said.

At the time, the insignificant "represented that she was an adult" connected the website wherever she met Greenberg -- and according to his plea agreement, helium acknowledges that helium "acted successful reckless disregard of the information that the Minor was little than 18 years aged erstwhile helium engaged successful commercialized enactment acts" and had a "reasonable accidental to observe" that she was underage.

Over the people of its investigation, the House Ethics Committee conducted interviews with astatine slightest half a twelve women who allegedly attended parties wherever the Florida congressman was besides present, and who were paid by Greenberg, Gaetz's one-time adjacent friend, sources told ABC News. Some of the witnesses had been subpoenaed by the committee, portion others agreed to cooperate, according to the sources.

The House Ethics Committee besides subpoenaed Gaetz's erstwhile girlfriend for testimony, and said she sat for an interrogation earlier successful the year, sources said. The erstwhile woman antecedently testified to a expansive assemblage successful the enactment trafficking probe, arsenic ABC News antecedently reported.

The committee has besides obtained a sworn written connection by Gaetz's ex-girlfriend wherever she lists the Florida congressman arsenic 1 of the attendees astatine a enactment successful July 2017 wherever dugs were contiguous and which was attended by the pistillate who Gaetz allegedly had enactment with erstwhile she was a minor, sources said.

ABC News antecedently reported that the committee obtained written grounds from a abstracted pistillate who said that successful July 2017, erstwhile she was 20 years old, she attended a enactment successful Florida that Gaetz besides attended, and which was attended by the pistillate who was a insignificant astatine the clip and wherever drugs including cocaine were present.

Greenberg, a cardinal witnesser successful the Justice Department probe, has been cooperating with the House Ethics investigation, according to sources. Earlier this year, portion serving clip successful a Florida national prison, helium provided written grounds to the committee, the sources said.

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Some witnesses were shown Venmo payments they allegedly received from Gaetz, sources said.

As ABC News antecedently reported, 1 pistillate who said she attended a enactment with the Gaetz successful 2017, who ABC News is not identifying, told the committee that a outgo from Gaetz was for sex, aggregate sources told ABC News. Others person said they were paid to be parties they said Gaetz besides attended, and that those parties included drugs and sex, the sources said.

Gaetz has agelong denied each of the allegations, including paying for sex, and antecedently dismissed them by claiming "someone is trying to recategorize my generosity to ex-girlfriends arsenic thing much untoward."

Earlier successful the twelvemonth the committee subpoenaed the Justice Department for records related to its probe into the Florida congressman, sources said. It is unclear if those records were turned over.

However, the committee had obtained immoderate Venmo records from Gaetz aft issuing the institution a subpoena, sources told ABC News. During the Justice Department's probe into Gaetz, nationalist reporting, including by The Daily Beast, mostly focused connected Venmo records from Greenberg, who, according to his plea agreement, utilized his relationship to "pay for commercialized enactment acts" with women helium besides introduced to others.