By Dartunorro Clark - NBC News
Rep. Matt Gaetz, a Florida Republican, charged a former Justice Department official whom he did not name with a plot to extort him for several million dollars, hours after it emerged that the legislator was being
investigated by the Department of
Justice.
Justice for an alleged sexual relationship he had with a minor
who he paid to travel with him.
Gaetz vehemently denied the allegations reported by
The New York Times
, which cited three people with knowledge of the matter.
He claimed that he and his family were victims of a $ 25 million extortion plot and that he was cooperating with federal authorities in the matter.
He added that his father, a former Florida political figure and a powerful man in the state, had struck
a deal with the FBI to wear a hidden microphone
.
[Another woman accuses Governor Andrew Cuomo of sexual misconduct]
Gaetz, 38, called a report quoted in the quoted newspaper detailing the investigation as "a seeded leak."
"Over the past few weeks, my family and I have been the victims of organized criminal extortion involving a former Justice Department official who wanted $ 25 million while threatening to smear my name," Gaetz said.
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"We have been cooperating with federal authorities on this matter and my father has even been using a hidden microphone at the direction of the FBI to catch these criminals," he said.
"The leak seeded tonight was intended to thwart that investigation."
[Four Latinas in the Biden Administration reflect on immigration and "the tough decisions to be made" in the White House]
"None of these accusations against me is true and the people who promote these lies are the targets of an ongoing extortion investigation," he added.
"I demand that the Department of Justice immediately hand over the recordings made under his instruction, in which his former colleague is implicated in crimes against me based on false accusations."
The Justice Department has declined to comment
.
Rep. Matt Gaetz at the Republican National Convention, Aug. 24 in Washington via REUTERS
According to
The New York Times
, it is unclear how Gaetz and the anonymous minor met.
The newspaper reported that the encounter took place two years ago when she was 17 years old and that investigators are examining whether Gaetz violated federal sex trafficking laws.
These laws make it a crime to induce a person under 18 to travel to have sex in exchange for something of value.
The investigation into Gaetz,
a rising star in the Republican Party and a staunch ally of former President Donald Trump
, began in the last months of the Trump Administration under then-Attorney General Bill Barr, according to the aforementioned outlet.
Gaetz assured
The New York Times
in an interview that he was told that he is the subject, not the target, of the investigation.
"I suspect that someone is trying to recategorize my generosity to my ex-girlfriends as something more unpleasant," he told the newspaper.
[Removal of the Capitol fence begins]
The New York Times
, citing all three sources, reported that
the Gaetz investigation is linked to an investigation into Joel Greenberg
, a Gaetz political ally who was indicted last year on federal harassment charges, including aggravated identity theft and sex trafficking of a child, among other charges.
Gaetz was seen in a photo with Greenberg posted to Twitter in 2019 during a visit to the White House.
A lawyer for Greenberg did not respond to a request for comment.
