An attorney says Matt Gaetz allegedly paid an adult woman for sex in 2017

Matt Gaetz, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to head the Justice Department, paid a woman for sex at a small party in Florida, where prostitution is illegal, in 2017 while he was a member of the House of Representatives, her lawyer said Monday.

In the interview, Joel Leppard said the woman also said she saw Gaetz having sex with her friend, who was 17 at the time, at the same invitation-only party in Orlando.

Leppard said two women he represents, whom NBC News is not naming, told House Ethics Committee investigators that Gaetz had paid them for sex on several occasions and they believed the committee’s report on Gaetz should be made public.

“They want the American people to know the truth and tell the truth,” he said.

Leppard said that within minutes of arriving at the Orlando party, one of his clients, who was 19 at the time, was introduced to Gaetz and then taken upstairs to have sex with him. Later that evening, Leppard said, as she was leaving to go to the pool, she saw Gaetz and her underage friend having sex at a gaming table, Leppard said.

“It’s a very vivid memory that she has,” he said.

Leppard said his client made this recount this spring in an interview with the House Ethics Committee, which has been investigating Gaetz on and off since 2021. The Justice Department also investigated Gaetz on sex trafficking allegations involving a 17-year-old girl; He was not charged with any crime.

Leppard’s client testified that she believed Gaetz did not know the girl was a minor, he added. He added that Gaetz “discontinued their sexual relationship” when he found out about it and “did not resume it until she turned 18” around December 2017.

Leppard said his client participated in a recorded conversation requested and monitored by the FBI with Gaetz in 2020 as part of a Justice Department investigation, but prosecutors ultimately declined to bring charges. The Department of Justice and the FBI declined to comment on the case.

Gaetz, 42, has long denied the allegations, saying he was the target of an extortion scheme. Gaetz’s representatives declined to answer specific questions about Leppard’s allegations, but they drew NBC News’ attention to a statement from Trump’s transition team.

Gaetz, a former Republican U.S. representative from Florida, he resigned from Congress last week after Trump announced plans to nominate him as attorney general to oversee the Justice Department.

In a statement Monday, Trump transition spokesman Alex Pfeiffer called the allegations “baseless” and said they were intended to “derail the second Trump administration.”

“Matt Gaetz will be the next attorney general. He is the right man for the job and will put an end to the weaponization of our justice system,” Pfeiffer said.

Leppard shared new details about his clients’ claims as Gaetz faces a bumpy road to Senate confirmation.

Leppard said his clients were subpoenaed to testify before the House Ethics Committee and produced thousands of pages of documents, including hundreds of text messages between them and Gaetz. NBC News has reviewed a copy of the subpoena. The Ethics Committee declined to comment.

Leppard accused Gaetz of using the phrase “party favors” as code for drugs in his text messages. His clients claimed that there were drugs at the parties, mainly marijuana, and also ecstasy, he added.

Leppard said it “seemed to matter” to the committee, adding that committee members were concerned about illegal drug use and payments for sex.

Leppard said his clients had sex with Gaetz outside Florida on at least two occasions. Gaetz brought Leppard’s clients to New York in 2019 and to the Bahamas in 2018, where they had sex with him, Leppard said. Leppard said the women were not paid for sex during the trip, but Gaetz paid for flights, lodging and entertainment.

The Bipartisan Ethics Commission, which lost jurisdiction over Gaetz after his resignation, has not publicly released a report detailing the years-old investigation. committee on Monday confirmed that he would meet on Wednesday to discuss the report.

Leppard said he was speaking on behalf of his clients, who want the commission to release the report to avoid having to give public testimony. Both women are private individuals who have no political leanings or motivation to defeat Gaetz, Leppard said.

“There is no dog involved in the fight,” he said. “They want to be excluded.”

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com