Former Florida congressman Matt Gaetz is being sued for alleged sex trafficking by two women who claim he paid them for sexual encounters and was involved in arranging meetings with other men.
The women, identified in the legal action as Jane Doe 1 and Jane Doe 2, say they met Micah Greenberg through Seeking Arrangement, an online dating website used to facilitate relationships between older, wealthier people and younger people seeking financial support.
Jane Doe 1 alleges she met Mr Greenberg in 2017 and initially engaged in sexual acts with him in exchange for money. She says she was introduced to Mr Gaetz at a party on 15 July that year.
She claims she saw Mr Gaetz have sex with a 17-year-old that night and alleges that he then gave the girl 400 dollars in cash.
Jane Doe 1 also alleges that Mr Gaetz sent her payments ranging from 150 to 1,000 dollars through Venmo. She says the transfers included descriptions such as “Being my friend”, “Being awesome”, “Here” and “Just because”.
Jane Doe 2 alleges she met Mr Gaetz in December 2017. She claims that, after taking ecstasy, both Mr Greenberg and Mr Gaetz had sex with her.
The two women say they went on several trips with Mr Gaetz, including to Las Vegas, the Florida Keys and New York City. They are suing him, Mr Greenberg and several other defendants for sex trafficking.
In a statement to the Miami Herald, which reported the lawsuit, Mr Gaetz denied much of the conduct alleged against him.
“I look forward to taking the plaintiffs’ depositions because much of the conduct alleged against me is false. The lawsuit relies almost exclusively on a Congressional Committee report that didn’t allow me to confront my accusers. Now I will finally have that chance,” he said.
