Former Congressman Matt Gaetz withdrew his 2024 bid to lead the Justice Department following similar allegations<\/p>\n
Two women have filed a federal lawsuit accusing former US Representative Matt Gaetz, President Donald Trump\u2019s first pick for attorney general, of participating in a sex trafficking ring while serving in Congress. Gaetz has faced similar allegations for years, and has denied any wrongdoing.
\nThe lawsuit, filed in Florida on Thursday, alleges that Gaetz and several other men, including former Seminole County Tax Collector Joel Greenberg and former Florida legislator Christopher Dorworth, sexually exploited the plaintiffs between 2017 and 2019.
\nThe women, identified as Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2, are seeking unspecified damages under the federal Trafficking Victims Protection Act.
\nAccording to the complaint, Greenberg recruited financially vulnerable young women through the dating website SeekingArrangement.com and introduced them to Gaetz.
\nThe lawsuit alleges that Gaetz had sex with Jane Doe 1 and a 17-year-old girl at a July 2017 party where narcotics were distributed. He allegedly paid the minor $400 in cash and transferred $500 to Jane Doe 1 three days later.
\nGaetz and Greenberg subsequently made at least 19 payments to Jane Doe 1, ranging from $150 to $1,000, the complaint claims. Jane Doe 2 alleged that she first had sex with Gaetz in exchange for money in October 2017.<\/p>\n
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The plaintiffs also accused the defendants of providing drugs and financing trips to Miami, Las Vegas, the Bahamas and other destinations in exchange for sex.
\nThe men allegedly used \u201ctheir public office, power, and wealth to prey on the economic vulnerability of Plaintiffs,\u201d the lawsuit states. Both women were in their early twenties when they met Gaetz.
\nGreenberg pleaded guilty to federal charges, including sex trafficking of a minor, in 2021 and was sentenced to 11 years in prison.
\nResponding on X on Thursday, Gaetz appeared to mock the lawsuit, posting a photo of three women in swimsuits overlooking the ocean in the Bahamas.
\n\u201cJane Doe Strikes Again!\u201d he wrote, sarcastically questioning why nobody had responded to the women\u2019s supposed cries for help on Instagram. He later told reporters he looked forward to disproving the allegations.<\/p>\n
Jane Doe Strikes Again! Two adult women sued me today alleging they were sex trafficked to the Bahamas. I\u2019m shocked nobody responded to their repeated cries for help, posted to instagram. https:\/\/t.co\/HPvX2xypzs\u2014 Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) October 15, 2026<\/p>\n
In December 2024, the House Ethics Committee reported finding \u201csubstantial evidence\u201d that Gaetz had paid women for sex, including a 17-year-old girl, and used illegal drugs while in office.
\nA separate Justice Department investigation ended in 2023 without charges.
\nGaetz withdrew from consideration to be Trump\u2019s attorney general in November 2024 after several Republican senators signaled opposition to his nomination over the allegations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Former Congressman Matt Gaetz withdrew his 2024 bid to lead the Justice Department following similar allegations Two women have filed a federal lawsuit accusing former US Representative Matt Gaetz, President…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":40023,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","footnotes":""},"categories":[4,6,3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-40022","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-environment","category-politics"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t