Woman testified that Matt Gaetz had sex with a minor at a Florida party in 2017

A woman testified to the House Ethics Committee that she saw former Congressman Matt Gaetz engaging in sexual activity with a minor in 2017.

A woman testified before the House Ethics Committee that she witnessed former congressman Matt Gaetz engaging in sexual intercourse with a minor at a party in Orlando, Florida, in 2017, according to her attorney, Joel Leppard.

Matt Gaetz speaks on Day 3 of the Republican National Convention (RNC), at the Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S., July 17, 2024. REUTERS/Mike Segar/File Photo(REUTERS)

“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 told NBC News on Friday.

The woman, who provided testimony to the ethics panel earlier this year, detailed the alleged incident to the committee in April. “The American people deserve to know the truth about the person slated to become the top law enforcement officer in the country,” Leppard argued, referring to Gaetz’s nomination by President-elect Donald Trump for attorney general.

Justice Department will bring no charges against Gaetz

This development follows an ABC News report that a key figure in a Justice Department investigation into sex trafficking allegations against Gaetz also testified before the ethics panel. The witness, now in her 20s, claimed Gaetz had sex with her when she was 17 and still in high school. Gaetz dismissed the claims calling them a “false smear.”

The Justice Department had previously informed Gaetz that no charges would be brought against him after a lengthy investigation into the allegations. However, the House Ethics Committee continued its separate inquiry.

The Florida Republican abruptly resigned from Congress on Wednesday following Trump’s nomination of him to lead the Department of Justice.

“These allegations are invented and would constitute false testimony to Congress,” Gaetz said in a statement to The New York Post. “This false smear following a three-year criminal investigation should be viewed with great scepticism.”

“On July 10, 2024, I provided the Committee dispositive evidence of my innocence by producing a ‘smoking gun’ contemporaneous, jailhouse writing, documenting the plot to frame me, which includes both Joel Greenberg and his victim,” Gaetz wrote. “This was authenticated by two former federal agents who interviewed the jailhouse informant who revealed the plot against me.”