A woman reportedly told the House Ethics Committee that she had sexual relations with Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., when she was 17 years old.
ABC News reported on Thursday that the woman testified to the committee in its investigation into Gaetz, which has now ceased after House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., announced that Gaetz resigned from Congress on Wednesday.
Gaetz told Fox News Digital in response to the new report, “These allegations are invented and would constitute false testimony to Congress. This false smear following a three-year criminal investigation should be viewed with great skepticism.”
The resignation announcement came hours after President-elect Donald Trump tapped Gaetz to be his attorney general.
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Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL) waves on stage on the third day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum on July 17, 2024 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Leon Neal/Getty Images)
The chief counsel for the House Ethics Committee declined to comment when asked by Fox News Digital.
Fox News Digital also reached out to Gaetz’s congressional office for comment.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) had previously spoken to the woman, now in her twenties, according to ABC, as part of its years-long investigation into Gaetz related to accusations of sex trafficking and obstruction of justice.
The DOJ ultimately did not press charges, and Gaetz has consistently denied all wrongdoing.
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President-elect Donald Trump holds a campaign rally at the PPG Paints Arena on Nov. 4, 2024 in Pittsburgh, Pa. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
The woman was subpoenaed by the House Ethics Committee over the summer, the report said.
The panel was expected to meet soon and potentially release a report on its investigation into Gaetz, but now that he resigned, the committee has lost jurisdiction over the matter.
The report could still be released, though it would break committee precedent.
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Sen. John Cornyn suggested he would like to see the Ethics report (Reuters)
But it could come out if Gaetz goes through the Senate confirmation process to lead the department that once investigated him.
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Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, a senior member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, suggested he’d want to see the report.
“I think there should not be any limitation on the Senate Judiciary Committee’s investigation, including, whatever the House ethics committee has generated,” he told reporters.
