Metro
Trump Ally Implicated in Underage Sex Probe
A former US lawmaker who was Donald Trump’s first pick to run the Justice Department paid for sex numerous times, including with an underage girl, according to a congressional report released Monday.
Matt Gaetz also regularly used cocaine and ecstasy, and bought marijuana from his Capitol Hill office, according to the 37-page document, the culmination of a long-running probe by the House Ethics Committee.
“The committee determined there is substantial evidence that Representative Gaetz violated House rules and other standards of conduct prohibiting prostitution, statutory rape, illicit drug use, impermissible gifts, special favors or privileges, and obstruction of Congress,” panel investigators wrote, according to reports.
Gaetz has repeatedly denied wrongdoing — pointing to the Justice Department’s decision not to bring charges against him in 2023 after a criminal probe — and the report came out despite him suing the committee to block its release.
Congressional investigators found that the 42-year-old broke multiple Florida laws on sexual misconduct, although they cleared him of federal sex trafficking violations.
The report listed payments by Gaetz totaling more than $90,000 to 12 women “likely in connection with sexual activity and/or drug use” between 2017 and 2020.
They focused on a 2018 trip to the Bahamas during which Gaetz is alleged to have had sex with four women and took the ecstasy.
The ex-congressman is an incendiary figure with few friends on Capitol Hill, but was a staunch Trump loyalist and a favorite of the president-elect’s ardent supporters.
He resigned from Congress in November after Trump nominated him for US attorney general.
– ‘High school’ victim –
The allegations had been openly discussed for years and Gaetz withdrew from consideration when it became clear he lacked sufficient backing from Republicans to win Senate confirmation.
Gaetz posted a series of tweets refuting some of the allegations in the report, including that he paid for sex.
“Giving funds to someone you are dating — that they didn’t ask for — and that isn’t ‘charged’ for sex is now prostitution?!?” he posted on X.
“There is a reason they did this to me in a Christmas Eve-Eve report and not in a courtroom of any kind where I could present evidence and challenge witnesses.”
Women told congressional investigators they were paid for sex at parties and other events by Gaetz and his friend Joel Greenberg, a former tax collector in Florida who was jailed for 11 years.
One encounter allegedly involved a 17-year-old girl, who told the committee she had sex with Gaetz twice at a July 2017 party.
“Victim A recalled receiving $400 in cash from Representative Gaetz that evening, which she understood to be payment for sex. At the time, she had just completed her junior year of high school,” the report says.
All the women who testified said the sexual encounters with Gaetz were consensual. Gaetz denied having sex with a minor in written responses to the committee.
It was a night of sorrow and devastation in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, as a horrific multiple-vehicle crash along the Ibadan axis of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway claimed at least five lives and left eight others injured in a fiery chain collision involving trucks, tankers, and smaller vehicles.
The accident occurred at about 10:00 p.m. on Friday around the Satguru Maharaji Ji Village axis, just before the Ibadan Toll Gate, throwing the busy highway into chaos as flames and thick smoke engulfed the scene.
The crash involved six trucks, including gas tankers and trailer units, two Toyota Hilux vans, and two cars, according to emergency officials who described it as one of the most severe road accidents in recent times on the corridor.
Eyewitnesses said the tragedy began when one of the trucks reportedly suffered brake failure and rammed into another vehicle ahead of it, triggering a chain reaction that quickly escalated into a multi-vehicle inferno.
In moments, several vehicles were trapped in the blaze, while terrified motorists and bystanders watched helplessly as the fire spread across the expressway.
Eight persons were rescued alive with varying degrees of injuries and were immediately rushed to nearby hospitals for urgent medical attention.
Confirming the incident, the Chairman of the Oyo State Fire Service, Maroof Akinwande, said the crash was caused by brake failure which spiralled into a massive fire outbreak.
“Upon arrival, we discovered that the accident involved six trucks (gas tankers and trailer trucks) and two cars, resulting in a fire outbreak,” he said.
“Five persons were recovered dead, while eight others were rescued and handed over to the team of the Federal Road Safety Corps led by SRC Adegbite from Toll Gate, Ibadan, for further medical attention at the nearest hospital.”
Firefighters eventually brought the inferno under control after hours of operation, while security operatives and traffic officials worked to clear wreckage and restore movement on the busy expressway.
Normalcy has since returned to the road, but the tragedy has left behind a grim reminder of the dangers of mechanical failure and unsafe haulage on Nigeria’s busiest highway.
A deeply disturbing incident has left residents of Daura Local Government Area, Katsina State, in shock after a 20-year-old woman allegedly killed her 97-year-old grandmother during a family dispute.
The Katsina State Police Command confirmed that the tragic incident occurred at about 7:00 p.m. on June 12, 2026, following an argument between the suspect and her paternal grandmother at their residence.
According to preliminary investigations, the disagreement escalated into violence when the young woman allegedly struck the elderly victim on the head with a wooden chair. The blow reportedly left the nonagenarian severely injured and unconscious.
The victim was later discovered in a pool of blood after the suspect’s father reported the incident to the Sabon Garin Daura Police Station. Police operatives immediately rushed to the scene and evacuated her to a nearby hospital for urgent medical attention.
Despite efforts by medical personnel, she was confirmed dead by a doctor shortly after arrival.
The Police Public Relations Officer of the Katsina State Command, DSP Abubakar Sadiq, said the suspect was arrested in the course of investigation and had reportedly made a confession to the crime.
He added that the suspect remains in custody and will be charged to court upon the completion of investigations, assuring that justice would be served in accordance with the law.
The command also appealed for calm among residents, reiterating its commitment to a thorough and transparent investigation into the circumstances surrounding the tragic incident.
No fewer than 20 shops were razed while goods valued at over ₦200 million were destroyed after a midnight fire gutted a shopping complex in the Dugbe area of Ibadan, Oyo State.
The inferno, which started around 11:30 p.m. on Saturday, affected the Nigerian Postal Service shopping complex located beside the Dugbe General Post Office.
Eyewitnesses told our correspondent on Sunday that the fire was allegedly triggered by an accident involving a Lexus saloon car.
According to residents, the driver reportedly lost control of the vehicle while travelling from the Queen’s Cinema axis towards Iyaganku.
The vehicle was said to have rammed into a giant billboard situated in front of the Nigerian Railway Corporation station in Ibadan before somersaulting and splitting into two.
Witnesses said the rear part of the vehicle, reportedly carrying a Compressed Natural Gas tank and back tyres, detached and rolled into the shopping complex, where an explosion occurred, igniting the fire.
The blaze razed about 20 shops dealing in stationery, computer accessories and clothing materials, leaving traders counting heavy losses.
Men of the Oyo State Fire Service were, however, able to prevent the fire from spreading to the General Post Office and adjoining buildings.
The occupants of the Lexus reportedly escaped unhurt.
Although some eyewitnesses alleged that the occupants were heading towards the Ring Road area before the crash, authorities had yet to officially confirm details surrounding their identities and movement as of the time of filing this report.
When our correspondent visited the scene around 8 a.m. on Sunday, firefighters and security operatives were still at the complex battling the aftermath of the inferno as smoke billowed from sections of the affected structure.
Shop owners and residents gathered at the scene, lamenting the destruction of goods and property.
One of the affected traders, Kingsley Chioma, said the Divisional Police Officer in charge of Iyaganku Police Station assured victims that efforts were underway to apprehend the driver.
“We lost goods worth millions of naira to the fire. The DPO assured us that the driver responsible for the incident would be arrested,” Chioma said.
As of the time of filing this report, officials of the Oyo State Fire Service and the police had yet to issue an official statement on the incident.
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