Pete Hegseth, US President-elect Donald Trump‘s option for defence minister, paid a lady who accused him of sexual abuse as part of a settlement contract, his lawyer said on Saturday. But, Hegseth has said that the intimate encounter was ‘ lawful,’ according to his lawyer.
The former wartime Fox News pundit is accused of sexually assaulting a girl in 2017.
Hegseth, through his attorney, Timothy Parlatore, has denied the allegations. According to a New York Times report, Parlatore claimed that the conversation was consensual and that Hegseth is a target of blackmail.
” Mr Hegseth is totally innocent”, Parlatore said. The attorney added that knowing that at the elevation of the# MeToo movement, the simple public allegation would assuredly lead to his immediate dismissal from Fox News, that she also took advantage of him and then extorted him.
A physical rape allegation against Hegseth was confirmed by the California Monterey Police Department. Hegseth was apparently speaking at a meeting at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa.
Four days after the incident, the alleged victim, who is connected to the California Federation of Republican Women, lodged a problem. According to a police statement, scars were observed on her knee. But, no charges were filed, and the authorities report remains unknown.
According to the New York Times, Hegseth just let the Trump change team know about the settlement. A security clause is included in the negotiation.
Despite the discussion, Trump has continued to support Hegseth. Prior to Trump’s first phrase, the Fox News number had been considered for the position of secretary of former affairs.
