Sex trafficking allegations follow Matt Gaetz after attorney general selection: What to know

The selection of Rep. Matt Gaetz to be the next attorney general has raised questions among lawmakers, including some Republicans, about President-elect Donald Trump's choice partly because of an investigation into sexual misconduct allegations.

Trump made the announcement Wednesday on Truth Social, calling Gaetz "a deeply gifted and tenacious attorney."

"(Gaetz) has distinguished himself in Congress through his focus on achieving desperately needed reform at the Department of Justice,” Trump said in the post on Truth Social. “Few issues in America are more important than ending the partisan Weaponization of our Justice System.”

Republican senators, including Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) and Susan Collins (R-Maine), both voiced skepticism regarding Gaetz's selection ahead of an anticipated confirmation hearing. Murkowski said it's not "a serious nomination," while Collins said she was "shocked" to learn about Trump's decision and indicated that "there will be a lot of questions raised at his hearing."

In addition to Gaetz being a staunch critic of the U.S. Justice Department, he could face questions about the prior allegations of sexual misconduct. Here is what to know about the allegations that could follow Gaetz into the DOJ.

Justice Department investigated Matt Gaetz for allegedly sex trafficking a 17-year-old girl

In March 2021, the New York Times first reported that the U.S. Justice Department was investigating Gaetz for allegedly trafficking and having a sexual relationship with a 17-year-old girl.

Gaetz was accused of not only paying the underage girl for sex, which was allegedly around 2019, but investigators also believed he paid for her travel over state lines, according to the New York Times, which cited "three people briefed on the matter."

The three people told the outlet that the then-38-year-old was part of a bigger investigation into Joel Greenberg, a political ally and local Florida official. The Justice Department indicted Greenberg in the summer of 2020 on numerous charges, including sex trafficking of a child and financially supporting individuals in exchange for sexual favors.

Greenberg, a Republican who was the tax collector in Florida's Seminole County before his indictment, took a plea deal in May 2021 and admitted to federal prosecutors that he paid women and an underage girl to have sex with him and other unidentified men. He was sentenced to 11 years in prison in 2022.

Throughout the investigation, Gaetz adamantly denied any involvement. The Justice Department did not charge Gaetz, but he remained under investigation for child sexual abuse and illegal drug use by the U.S. House Ethics Committee up until his resignation on Wednesday.

Matt Gaetz denies report of 2017 'sex party'

According to a report from NOTUS released in September, sealed testimony from three witnesses in the sex scandal case involving Greenberg and others allegedly placed Gaetz at a "sex party" in 2017 that included illegal drugs and a nude underaged girl.

The federal court filings, which included the sealed testimony, place Gaetz at one of the long-rumored parties for the first time since the Justice Department's investigation concluded, the Washington-based media outlet reported

The filings referenced testimony from "A.B.," the 17-year-old girl who was the center of the case, and two other women who claimed Gaetz attended a Lake Mary, Florida-area "sex party" on July 15, 2017, according to NOTUS.

When contacted by the Pensacola News Journal ? part of the USA TODAY Network ? in September, a spokesperson for Gaetz said, "Congressman Gaetz has never participated in the activities reflected in the NOTUS reporting. If people said otherwise, they are either confused or lying. This particular reporter used to work at the Daily Beast liberal publication and predicted the congressman’s arrest in 2021. Apparently he had to find other work.”

The testimony from the women who claimed Gaetz attended the party was taken from deposition and affidavits referenced in a lawsuit between Joel Greenberg's family and the alleged host of the soirée, former Florida Rep. Christopher Dorworth, the News Journal reported.

Dorworth filed a federal defamation lawsuit in 2023 against the 17-year-old girl, Greenberg and some of Greenberg's family members, accusing them of "conspiring with Joel’s sex trafficking victim, A.B., to falsely accuse Dorworth and Gaetz of sexual misconduct."

US House Ethics Committee's probe into Gaetz ended following resignation

The U.S. House Ethics Committee's investigation into child sex abuse allegations against Gaetz ended once the lawyer resigned from Congress in November, Rep. Michael Guest, the Republican chair of the House Ethics Committee, told reporters.

“If he were to be appointed, then he would have to resign his position in the House so the ethics investigation at that point would cease, just like with any other member, we only have jurisdiction being the Ethics Committee, as long as a person is a member of Congress,” Guest told CNN.

The committee, which expanded its probe in June to include additional allegations, was to decide on Friday whether to release its report, but his resignation effectively ended the investigation, USA TODAY reported.

Gaetz was the subject of a three-year investigation by the panel over allegations of sexual misconduct, illicit drug use, accepting “improper gifts” and giving out special favors to individuals with whom he had relationships.

It is unclear if the report will be released anytime soon, if ever, particularly considering Gaetz's recent attorney general nomination.

Contributing: Kevin Robinson & Jim Little, Pensacola News Journal; Bart Jansen, Joey Garrison & Riley Beggin, USA TODAY

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Matt Gaetz's trafficking allegations follow him after AG selection