Ethics report finds ex-US Rep. Matt Gaetz accused of misconduct and drug use

WASHINGTON

Former US Representative Matt Gaetz violated state laws by engaging in sexual misconduct with a minor and using illegal drugs during his time in Congress, according to a final House Ethics Committee report. 

The 37-page report alleges that Gaetz paid women, including a 17-year-old girl, for sex and used drugs in various settings, including his Capitol Hill office.

The panel found “substantial evidence” that Gaetz, who resigned from Congress in November, committed statutory rape, accepted impermissible gifts, and obstructed Congress. The report highlights text messages, receipts, and testimony from witnesses who described being paid for sexual encounters with Gaetz, as well as parties involving drugs like ecstasy.

One allegation involved a 2018 trip to the Bahamas, where Gaetz allegedly engaged in drug use and sexual activities with multiple women. Investigators found that between 2017 and 2020, Gaetz paid regularly to women for sexual activity, some of whom testified the encounters were consensual but impaired by drug use.

Gaetz denied the allegations, calling them a “smear.” He reportedly filed a lawsuit Monday in US District Court seeking to block the report’s release, arguing it represents “unconstitutional” jurisdiction over a private citizen and poses “irreparable harm” to his reputation, according to NBC news.

The complaint accuses the Ethics Committee of an "unconstitutional" attempt "to exercise jurisdiction over a private citizen through the threatened release of an investigative report containing potentially defamatory allegations, in violation of the Committee’s own rules.”

The Ethics Committee initially voted to keep the report private but reversed course after bipartisan support for its release. Despite years of investigation and sensational claims, the Justice Department declined to charge Gaetz with federal sex trafficking violations.

Gaetz has been under investigation by the ethics committee on allegations of sexual misconduct, illegal drug use and accepting improper gifts.

The lawmaker, who resigned last month after President-elect Donald Trump announced plans to nominate him to the US Attorney General post, has denied any wrongdoing.

In addition to the committee's long-running investigation, Gaetz had been under federal scrutiny on allegations that he engaged in underage sex trafficking. That probe was closed in February 2023.