Screenshot via CSPAN
Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz should feel his ears (and seat) burning, if recent developments at the Orlando federal courthouse are what they appear to be.
Matt Gaetz's ex-girlfriend seems to be testifying in the ongoing probe into whether the Panhandle politician engaged in sex trafficking.
The woman dated Gaetz around the time that federal investigators are researching. CNN might have knowledge related to an obstruction of justice investigation, but the woman's attorney, Timothy Jansen, declined to comment when confronted by reporters.
“We are here at the courthouse with my client. We have no comment,” he said, per the Orlando Sentinel. “My client has no comment about the proceedings or what’s happening today.”
Gaetz's allegations stem from an investigation into his former associate Joel Greenberg. The one-time tax collector in Seminole County pleaded guilty to a host of charges including sex trafficking and fraud. The then-17-year-old at the heart of that sex trafficking charge is believed to be the same one investigators are working to link to Gaetz. Unearthed texts and Venmo receipts appear to show Greenberg setting up escorts for Gaetz, but the identity of those women and whether they were underage has yet to be confirmed.
Reports from NBC News claim the grand jury investigation is focusing on three charges: sex trafficking, violating the Mann Act (crossing state lines for the purposes of prostitution) and obstruction of justice. The publication also reports that she might be seeking an immunity deal, protecting her from prosecution in exchange for information about Gaetz.
Greenberg offered up a similar deal as part of his plea and his attorneys have successfully pushed back his sentencing date twice so that he might share more information with investigators and receive a lighter sentence.
Gaetz has denied all accusations of wrongdoing, sometimes bizarrely.
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