Trump defense secretary pick Pete Hegseth denies sexual assault allegation, acknowledges payment to accuser
Former Fox News host Pete Hegseth’s attorney on Sunday confirmed to NBC News that Hegseth, whom President-elect Donald Trump has named as his candidate for defense secretary, paid a woman an undisclosed amount after she accused him of sexual assault.
Former Fox News host Pete Hegseth’s attorney on Sunday confirmed to NBC News that Hegseth, whom President-elect Donald Trump has named as his candidate for defense secretary, paid a woman an undisclosed amount after she accused him of sexual assault.
“In 2023, Hegseth paid the complainant as part of a civil confidential settlement agreement and maintains his innocence,” Timothy Parlatore, Hegseth’s attorney, said in a statement.
He also denied that the encounter between Hegseth and an unnamed woman, which she alleges happened in 2017, was sexual assault.
Parlatore’s statement comes after The Washington Post on Saturday reported that a friend of Hegseth’s accuser sent a memo to the Trump transition team detailing the allegations.
NBC News has not independently reviewed the memo, but Parlatore confirmed that it is related to an encounter Hegseth and the unnamed woman had in Monterey, California, during a conference of the California Federation of Republican Women.
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