Former Rep. Matt Gaetz is facing serious allegations outlined in a draft report from the House Ethics Committee. The report accuses Gaetz of using illegal drugs, engaging in sexual misconduct, and violating House rules, including payments to women for sex, one of whom was allegedly a 17-year-old high school junior.
According to the 37-page draft obtained by CBS News, Gaetz allegedly spent over $90,000 between 2017 and 2020 on 12 women. The report states there is “substantial evidence” that these payments were tied to sexual activity and drug use.
“The Committee determined there is substantial evidence that Representative Gaetz violated House Rules and other standards of conduct prohibiting prostitution, statutory rape, illicit drug use, impermissible gifts, special favors or privileges, and obstruction of Congress,” the report alleges.
The draft includes testimony regarding a 2017 party where Gaetz allegedly had sexual relations with a 17-year-old, referred to as “Victim A.” The report claims Gaetz had sex with the minor twice during the party, at least once in the presence of other attendees, and paid her $400.
“Victim A stated that she did not inform Representative Gaetz that she was under 18 at the time, nor did he ask her age,” the report says. However, the committee emphasized that under Florida law, ignorance of age is not a defense.
While the committee did not find evidence that Gaetz violated federal sex trafficking laws, the allegations of statutory rape and prostitution remain a central focus of the draft report.
The report alleges that Gaetz attended drug- and sex-fueled parties, including a 2018 trip to the Bahamas where witnesses claimed he used ecstasy and had sexual encounters with four women. Witnesses provided details of Gaetz requesting drugs such as marijuana cartridges and ecstasy, with some saying they observed him using these substances multiple times.
The investigation also found Gaetz allegedly created a pseudonymous email account from his congressional office to purchase marijuana.
Gaetz is further accused of misusing his congressional status to assist a woman he met in 2018 in obtaining a passport. The report claims he falsely represented her as a constituent to expedite the process.
“An individual from the Department of State, Miami Passport Agency sent the Chief of Staff an email confirming ‘an appointment for your constituent,’ which the Chief of Staff then forwarded to the woman, who lived in Orlando, Florida—outside of Representative Gaetz’ congressional district,” the draft alleges.
Gaetz, who resigned from Congress on November 13, has vehemently denied the accusations. He described the payments as gifts to women he dated and insisted that no charges were ever brought against him during a prior Department of Justice investigation, which concluded without indictments in February 2023.
“In my single days, I often sent funds to women I dated — even some I never dated but who asked,” he said.
Gaetz has filed a lawsuit to prevent the report’s official release, arguing that he is now a private citizen and outside the jurisdiction of the Ethics Committee.
The committee began its investigation in 2021 but paused during the federal sex trafficking inquiry. After federal prosecutors declined to press charges earlier this year, the Ethics Committee resumed its work.
In December, as reported by Resist Times the Republican-led House Ethics Committee voted in secret to release the findings, intensifying public scrutiny of Gaetz’s conduct.