Rep. Matt Gaetz was at a 2017 party with a 17-year-old girl at the heart of an alleged sex trafficking scandal, according to legal documents filed Thursday.
The filings cite affidavits based on three witness testimonies—which remain sealed—which put the Florida congressman at the party, according to Notus. One witness cited by the filings says the girl, a high-school junior, was naked and said people were there to “engage in sexual activities” while drugs including cocaine and ecstasy were present.
The documents were filed by lawyers trying to recoup legal fees in a lawsuit filed by Chris Dorworth—a lobbyist friend of Gaetz’s who hosted the alleged party at his Florida home.
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The teen girl is identified in the paperwork only as A.B., according to Notus. “The discovery taken in this case to date reflects that on Saturday, July 15, 2017… Dorworth… hosted a party at his residence… with the following guests present” one of the documents says, before listing several people including “A.B.” and “Matt Gaetz.”
According to Notus, the new documents are the first time that “that sworn testimony has been referenced in public court filings alleging that the congressman attended one of the long-rumored parties tied to an alleged underage sex scandal.”
In 2021, the Daily Beast reported on a confession letter written by Gaetz’s associate Joel Greenberg. In the note, Greenberg claimed Gaetz paid him to arrange sex with several women and a girl who, at the time, was 17.
The Beast also revealed private Venmo logs showing that Gaetz did send money to Greenberg, even using a nickname for the adolescent at one point when she had turned 18.
Greenberg is currently serving an 11-year sentence after his conviction on several charges, including sex trafficking with a child.
Gaetz has previously denied engaging in sex trafficking or having sex with a minor, and a DOJ investigation ended without charges being brought against the congressman.
Read it at Notus
