Topline
Federal prosecutors reportedly recommended against charging Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz (R) in a probe into alleged sexual misconduct with teenage girls due to credibility issues with two key witnesses—a surprising turn in the federal investigation following early reports that an arrest seemed “imminent.”
Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz is reportedly unlikely to face charges in a sex trafficking … [+]
Key Facts
Although the negative recommendation does not eliminate the possibility of charges, it is unlikely Department of Justice officials will reject the advice, the Washington Post reported, speaking to unnamed sources familiar with the probe.
Gaetz, a loud-spoken supporter of former President Donald Trump, has been mired in controversy after a bombshell New York Times report last March uncovered the investigation over accusations the representative paid a 17-year-old girl for sex and paid her to travel with him across state lines, which Gaetz denied.
An indictment had seemed imminent in May, 2021, after a former Capitol Hill staffer, one of Gaetz’s ex-girlfriends, agreed to cooperate with federal investigators last May.
Just days earlier, Gaetz’ friend and former state official Joel Greenberg pleaded guilty to sex trafficking of a minor—Greenberg also agreed to provide “substantial assistance” to prosecutors, including the ongoing probe into Gaetz, in exchange for dropping most of the charges against him.
Greenberg had reportedly been speaking with federal prosecutors and had informed them that Gaetz had allegedly paid a 17-year-old for sex, the New York Times reported—another sign that an indictment could be coming for Gaetz.
Greenberg and Gaetz’s ex-girlfriend, two central people in the probe, have since been found uncredible in the investigation—Greenberg had previously admitted to fabricating allegations that a teacher who ran against him in a campaign for tax collector had sexual relations with a student, the Washington Post reported.
Key Background
Federal investigators launched their investigation into potential sex trafficking violations in March, 2021, reportedly as part of a broader investigation into Greenberg, who was indicted on sex trafficking charges in July, 2020, sources told the New York Times. Prosecutors were reportedly focused on whether Gaetz and Greenberg sent cash and gifts to women in exchange for sex, as well as whether Gaetz allegedly traveled to the Bahamas in 2018 with a 17-year-old girl with whom he reportedly had a sexual relationship, a possible violation of sex trafficking laws, which he denies. Gaetz’ ex-girlfriend, one of several women he allegedly took on the trip, agreed to testify before a federal grand jury in Orlando. While Gaetz denied doing anything illegal, he told Axios in 2021, “I have definitely, in my single days, provided for women I’ve dated. You know, I’ve paid for flights, for hotel rooms. I’ve been, you know, generous as a partner.”
Further Reading
Charges unlikely against Gaetz in federal sex-trafficking probe (Politico)
Matt Gaetz’ Ex-Girlfriend Will Reportedly Talk To Feds In Child Sex Trafficking Probe (Forbes)
Feds Probe Matt Gaetz’s Bahamas Trip In Sex Trafficking Investigation (Forbes)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/brianbushard/2022/09/23/matt-gaetz-likely-wont-face-charges-in-sex-trafficking-probe-one-year-after-arrest-seemed-imminent/