ABC News reports that "multiple new witnesses" have been contacted in an investigation into allegations of sex trafficking and lobbying violations
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ABC News reports that "multiple new witnesses" have been contacted in an investigation into allegations of sex trafficking and lobbying violations
A
grand jury separately investigated whether the Florida Republican had a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old and paid her to travel with him, though investigators recommended not moving forward with trafficking charges against the lawmaker.
ABC News reports that, in recent days, the House committee's investigators have expanded their "contact with individuals who have ties to the initial Justice Department investigation into Gaetz," and that the investigation centers both on the sex trafficking allegations as well as possible lobbying violations by Gaetz.
News of the federal investigation into Gaetz first broke in March 2021 and, according to
The New York Times, was opened in the final months of the Trump administration under then-Attorney General
Bill Barr.
Sources told NBC News at the time that Gaetz was being investigated for three separate alleged crimes: sex trafficking a 17-year-old; violating the Mann Act by taking a woman or women across state lines for prostitution; and obstruction of justice.
The House Ethics Committee first announced it, too,
had begun an investigation into Gaetz in April 2021, saying in a statement, "The Committee is aware of public allegations that Representative Matt Gaetz may have engaged in sexual misconduct and/or illicit drug use, shared inappropriate images or videos on the House floor, misused state identification records, converted campaign funds to personal use, and/or accepted a bribe, improper gratuity, or impermissible gift, in violation of House Rules, laws, or other standards of conduct."