Trump’s Pentagon pick paid woman after sex assault allegation, denies wrongdoing: lawyer

Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s prime for defense secretary, paid a pistillate who accused him of intersexual assault to caput disconnected the menace of a baseless lawsuit, according to Hegseth’s lawyer.

Hegseth was accused of intersexual battle successful 2017 aft a speaking quality astatine a Republican women’s lawsuit successful Monterey, California, according to a statement released by the city. No charges were filed.

His lawyer, Tim Parlatore, told The Associated Press connected Sunday that the intersexual brushwood was consensual and that the pistillate who made the accusation days aboriginal was the “aggressor.” That assertion has not been confirmed successful the connection released by the city.

Parlatore said a outgo was made to the pistillate arsenic portion of a confidential colony a fewer years aft the constabulary probe because Hegseth believed the filing of a threatened suit could person gotten him fired from Fox News, wherever helium was past a fashionable host. Parlatore would not uncover the magnitude of the payment.

“He was falsely accused and my presumption is that helium was the unfortunate of blackmail,” Parlatore said, calling it a lawsuit of “successful extortion.”

The Washington Post earlier reported details of the payment. The paper besides reported it obtained a transcript of a memo sent to Trump’s modulation squad this past week by a pistillate who said she is simply a person of the accuser that details the intersexual battle allegations.

Trump’s modulation squad had nary contiguous remark Sunday connected the memo.

The idiosyncratic who reported the battle — whose name, property and enactment were not released — had bruises connected the close thigh, according to the city’s statement. No weapons were progressive successful the encounter, the idiosyncratic told police.

The incidental occurred sometime betwixt 11:59 p.m. connected Oct. 7 and 7 a.m. the pursuing morning, according to the city’s statement.

Hegseth was successful Monterey astatine the clip to code the California Federation of Republican Women during a banquet meal held astatine the group’s biennial convention, according to societal media posts and promotional materials from the time.

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Monterey officials said they were withholding further details included successful the constabulary study due to the fact that it included investigation and conclusions by instrumentality enforcement officials that are exempt from merchandise nether authorities nationalist records law.

At the clip of the 2017 accusations, Hegseth, present 44, was going done a divorcement with his 2nd wife, with whom helium has 3 children. She filed for divorcement aft helium had a kid with a Fox News shaper who is present his wife, according to tribunal records and societal media posts by Hegseth. His archetypal matrimony ended successful 2009, besides aft infidelity by Hegseth, according to tribunal records.

After the accusations archetypal surfaced past week, Steven Cheung, a spokesperson for the Trump transition, issued a connection saying the president-elect is “nominating high-caliber and highly qualified candidates to service successful his Administration.”

“Mr. Hegseth has vigorously denied immoderate and each accusations, and nary charges were filed. We look guardant to his confirmation arsenic United States Secretary of Defense truthful helium tin get started connected Day One to Make America Safe and Great Again,” Cheung said.