A woman told police in California in 2017 that she was sexually assaulted in a hotel room by Pete Hegseth, President Donald Trump’s pick as Secretary of Defense, according to a police report obtained by NBC News.
The 24-page report from Monterey police includes graphic details, as well as several accounts from the woman — identified only as “Jane Doe” — and Hegseth about the encounter. Monterey police had initially released a one-page statement last week confirming that it had investigated a sexual assault allegation against Hegseth in October 2017.
Hegseth, a former Fox News host, has denied wrongdoing and has not been charged with a crime. Over the weekend, his attorney told NBC News that Hegseth paid the woman an undisclosed amount “as part of a civil confidential settlement agreement and maintains his innocence.”
The attorney, Timothy Parlatore, told NBC News on Thursday: “This police report confirms what I have been saying all along. The incident was fully investigated and police ruled the allegation was false. Therefore, no charges were filed.”
According to the report, which does not specify why charges were not filed, the incident allegedly occurred after Hegseth and the woman attended a Republican women’s event. A nurse later told police that the woman thought “something may have been put in her drink because she cannot remember most of the events of that night.”
But the woman told police she remembered being in a room with Hegseth, who she said took her phone and locked the door when she tried to leave. She also recalled saying “no” a lot.
According to the report:
JANE DOE’s next memory was of her lying on a bed or couch and HEGSETH lying over her. HEGSETH’s dog pictures floated over her face. HEGSETH was bare-chested, but JANE DOE does not know whether his shirt was completely off. JANE DOE noticed no tattoos, scars and/or marks on HEGSETH’S body. JANE DOE stated that she saw HEGSETH completely naked during this incident. The next memory JANE DOE had was when HEGSETH ejaculated on her stomach. HEGSETH threw a towel at her and asked her, “Are you okay?”
The woman went to a hospital four days later for a sexual assault examination.
Hegseth told police there were “always” consensual conversations and “always” consensual contacts,” the report said. Hegseth also told police that the woman “showed early signs of remorse” afterward, but did not elaborate.
After meeting with senators on Capitol Hill on Thursday, Hegseth said he looks forward to the confirmation process. He told reporters: “As far as the media is concerned, I will keep this very simple. The case was fully investigated and I was fully exonerated, and I’m going to leave it at that.”
Trump’s transition team did not immediately respond to NBC News’ request for comment.
This article was originally published on MSNBC.com
