The House investigation of Matt Gaetz was deemed closed when he resigned from his seat to accept Donald Trump’s nomination for Attorney General.

But the fiery loyalist has faced allegations that he had sex with a 17-year-old girl, attended drug-filled parties with escorts and showed videos of his “conquests” to colleagues in Congress since Mr Trump made the announcement.

The former former Florida representative now faces more turmoil as the House Ethics Inquiry into the allegations is threatened with going public amid fierce rumors that the allegations may be leaked.

The House Ethics Committee has launched an investigation into the Florida Panhandle Republican for alleged illegal drug use and sexual contact with a 17-year-old boy in 2021, and a vote on releasing the investigation will take place before Mr. Gaetz resigns earlier this week.

Mr. Gaetz has denied allegations that he slept with the 17-year-old. He was never charged.

Because he is no longer a House Representative, the committee no longer has authority to investigate him and the report will not be released.

According to the New York Times, it had already been delayed due to rules prohibiting the publication of a negative report close to the election.

The House investigation follows a federal public corruption investigation into Joel Greenberg, an Orlando-based tax collector who is a close associate of Mr. Gaetz.

During their investigation, investigators gained access to Mr. Greenberg’s electronic devices and discovered that he had repeatedly paid a young woman he met online to attend parties with him and his friends, according to the New York Times.

When it was revealed that the woman was under 18, the tax collector agreed to cooperate with federal authorities to eliminate the possibility of a long prison sentence if convicted of having sex with a minor.

Greenberg was sentenced to 11 years in prison after pleading guilty to sex trafficking of minors, wire fraud, stalking, identity theft, producing a false identification card and conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government.

Mr. Greenberg claimed that Mr. Gaetz also had sex with the woman, who was 17 at the time, and that he knew she was being paid, the New York Times reported.

The Justice Department, where Mr. Gaetz will serve as attorney general, launched a two-year investigation into him.

Last year, the Justice Department ended the investigation without charges.

The Ethics Committee, which paused its work to make room for federal investigators, reopened the investigation into Mr. Gaetz.

Here’s everything we know about what the committee is investigating.

What is the House Ethics Committee investigating?

The House’s first investigation was opened in 2021, but could not operate in earnest until the federal investigation was closed in 2023.

Over the past year and a half, the Ethics Committee has reviewed a number of allegations made against Mr. Gaetz; These included showing naked pictures of women to other members of Parliament, using illegal drugs, and having sex with a 17-year-old woman. Obsolete and misused campaign funds for personal use.

The panel interviewed several women, including the unnamed 17-year-old girl Mr. Greenberg told federal investigators Mr. Gaetz allegedly had sex with.

At the same time, Mr. Greenberg was subpoenaed to turn over documents related to Mr. Gaetz.

What happens next?

Following his resignation, both Democratic and Republican lawmakers called for the House Ethics Committee’s unreleased report on Mr. Gaetz to be made public.

An attorney representing the 17-year-old alleged victim also supported his release.

Republican Senator John Cornyn said the Senate should be given access to the report before it comes to a vote on confirming Mr. Gaetz as attorney general.

“I don’t want there to be any limitations on what the Senate can consider,” he told reporters.

When asked if he would like to see the ethics report, he replied: “Absolutely.”

John Clune, the alleged victim’s attorney, said: “The nomination of Mr. Gaetz as attorney general is a twist in a truly dark series of events.

“We support the Parliamentary Ethics Committee’s immediate publication of its reports. “He was a 17-year-old high school student and there were eyewitnesses.”

The Washington Post reported that the House committee could release the report to Mr. Gaetz on Friday.

Alleged encounter

Mr. Gaetz is said to have attended a drug-filled party hosted by Chris Dorworth, a former Republican member of the Florida House of Representatives, in the summer of 2017, according to testimony given by Mr. Greenberg’s ex-wife to the ethics committee.

Mr. Dorworth denied attending the party at his home, claiming instead that he was celebrating a friend’s birthday “at a remote lake,” according to The Orlando Sentinel.

Sex workers were said to have wandered into their Heathrow, Florida, home to engage in “sexual activities in bedrooms at the Dorworth residence and also engage in alcohol, cocaine, ecstasy, also known as molly and marijuana,” according to court documents. .

Among the guests at the party was the 17-year-old girl, known only to AB in court records.

AB, who had just completed his first year at a local high school, claimed that he drove his mother’s car through the security gates of the gated community at 6.15pm on July 15, 2017.

Allegedly, guests were ordered to place their cellphones in a large bowl upon arrival to prevent evidence of the party from being spread.

Court documents stated AB was naked among adult guests.

The documents contained no allegations and did not provide any evidence that Mr. Gaetz used illegal drugs or had sex with the underage girl.

However, witnesses say he was going to attend the party.

The House Committee’s investigation reportedly included testimony from Mr. Gaetz’s ex-girlfriend, who said she attended a party where drugs were found and that the woman he allegedly had sex with also attended the party. He was a child, according to ABC News.

Jacob Bliss, a spokesman for Gaetz’s office, told the Orlando Sentinel on Friday that Mr. Gaetz “was never involved” in the alleged events.

“If people say otherwise, they are either confused or lying,” Mr. Bliss said.

The evidence, including an interview with AB, remains buried in unreleased court documents.

Why does Donald Trump love Matt Gaetz?

Mr. Gaetz, a five-term representative of the Florida Panhandle, has been a staunch defender of Mr. Trump.

Earlier this year, he traveled to New York while the president-elect was facing his own hush money case.

When Mr. Trump faced off against Joe Biden in the presidential debate in June, Mr. Gaetz made sure to maintain a strong presence in the boardroom, citing the new president’s accomplishments.

He also went on to help Mr. Trump prepare for a debate against Kamala Harris in which the Republican made the false claim that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, ate cats and dogs.

Both men share the claim that the justice system, including the Department of Justice, unfairly went after them.

Over the years, Mr. Gaetz has positioned himself as a man willing to take on the FBI, an agency Mr. Trump has complained about over its 2016 investigation into his campaign’s ties to Russia and the raid on classified documents at Mar-a. -Lago.

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