New details have emerged about the sexual assault allegation against Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump’s pick to run the Department of Defense.
This week, a report emerged revealing police investigated Hegseth for alleged sexual misconduct in Monterey, California in 2017. Now, The Washington Post reports the veteran and Fox News host paid the woman who accused him of sexual assault as part of a non-disclosure agreement. Despite the payment, he maintained the encounter was consensual.
The Post, citing a statement from Hegseth’s attorney Timothy Parlatore, reported that Hegseth was “visibly intoxicated” when he encountered a woman in Monterey seven years ago. Parlatore said in this statement that the woman contacted the police, and they concluded, “the Complainant had been the aggressor in the encounter.”
However, Monterey police did not confirm this to the Post.
Hegseth later agreed to pay the woman as part of an NDA because he was concerned he’d be fired by Fox News, the Post reports. The NDA and payment came after she threatened to litigate further in 2020, the Post reports, citing Hegseth’s attorney.
The Post also obtained a memo which was written by an unnamed individual — who claims to be a friend of the accuser — and sent to Trump’s presidential transition team. That memo claimed Hegseth raped a 30-year-old conservative group staffer in a hotel room in Monterey in 2017, the Post reports. Police investigated the incident but Hegseth never faced charges, the memo said.
Trump spokesperson Steven Cheung told the Post that Hegseth “vigorously denies” all wrongdoing.
“President Trump is nominating high-caliber and extremely qualified candidates to serve in his Administration,” Cheung said. “Mr. Hegseth has vigorously denied any and all accusations, and no charges were filed. We look forward to his confirmation as United States Secretary of Defense so he can get started on Day One to Make America Safe and Great Again.”
Meanwhile, the Fox News host’s lawyer told the Post that “Hegseth strongly felt that he was the victim of blackmail and innocent collateral damage in a lie that the Complainant was holding onto to keep her marriage intact.”
Hegseth’s lawyer noted “it was the height of the MeToo movement,” and that he “ultimately decided to enter into a settlement for a significantly reduced amount,” according to the Post.
Earlier this week,Vanity Fair reported that Trump’s team was briefed on Wednesday evening about an allegation that Hegseth engaged in sexual misconduct.
Wiles and Trump’s lawyers spoke to Hegseth after learning about the alleged incident, Vanity Fair added. The Fox News host reportedly said the incident was consensual.
“This allegation was already investigated by the Monterey Police Department and they found no evidence for it,” Hegseth’s attorney told the outlet.In a statement to The Independent, Parlatore said: “Mr. Hegseth is completely innocent. He was cleared after a police investigation determined that the woman was the aggressor in the situation and was then the subject of blackmail. This entire episode detracts from all the women out there who are true victims.”
The Independent has contacted the Monterey Police Department for comment.
