Pete Hegseth: Police report on Trump’s case of sexual assault on the defense

New details about the woman’s complaint against his chosen for the defence ministry, Pete Hegseth for back in 2017 see the light of day. Pete Hegseth, Donald Trump’s chosen for the position of US Defence Minister and former FOX News presenter, has been involved in which took place in October 2017, at a hotel in Monterey, during a conference organized by the California Republican Women’s Federation. The 22-page report, released by the office of Monterey, California, prosecutor on Wednesday night (20.11.2024) exposes conflicting accounts of what happened then with new details. A woman from California told police that Pete Hegseth, whom Donald Trump has chosen for the defence ministry, prevented her from leaving a hotel room, took her phone and then sexually assaulted her, even though she repeatedly told him “no”, according to CNN who invokes a police report. Hegseth told police that their meeting was consensual and that he had made sure that the woman “feel comfortable with what was happening between the two of them.” Seven years after the alleged sexual assault, questions about what happened that night could jeopardise Hegseth’s nomination for the defence ministry and seem likely to be at the heart of the forthcoming hearing for his appointment. Hegseth was not charged. His lawyer admitted that Hegseth later concluded a settlement agreement with the complainant, which included unclear financial payment and confidentiality agreement. Although Hegseth insisted that the meeting was consensual, the lawyer said he was afraid that the woman was ready to make a claim against him during the #MeToo movement that could cost him his job as a Fox News presenter. “This police report confirms what I was saying from the beginning, that the incident was fully investigated and the police found that the allegations were false, which is why no charges were filed,” said Timothy Parlatore, Hegseth’s lawyer, at CNN on Wednesday night – although the report does not say the police found that the allegations were false. The woman who accused Hegseth of assault broke out crying when asked about the matter by CNN reporters last week and refused to comment. “He took my phone and blocked his body the door – I said no” According to the new Police report, the alleged attack took place in the morning hours of October 8, 2017, after Hegseth spoke at a conference of the California Federation of Republican Women at the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa the previous night. The report, which identifies the prosecutor as “Jane Doe”, summarises police interviews with Doe, Hegseth, conference participants and a hotel employee and includes video descriptions from the hotel examined by the police. Both Doe and Hegseth, as well as several attendees interviewed by the police, told authorities that the two of them went with a company to the hotel bar, Knuckles, after speaking and at a party in a hotel suite. There, a conference participant told police that Hegseth touched her on the knee and invited her to his hotel room. She refused the invitation and then “won his attention” Doe who intervened. That woman who participated in the conference later left the bar and stated that Doe did not look drunk. Another participant in the conference told police that he saw Doe and another woman flirting with Hegseth at the bar. At the time, Doe “did not seem to be drunk to the point where she was unable to care for her safety,” she said. Doe told the police she believed that Hegseth was misbehaving to other women during the conference, according to the report. She later told a hospital nurse that “she was not sure, but believes that something might have been thrown into her drink, as she does not remember most of the events of the night” and the nurse transferred it to the police, according to the report. The report also notes that Doe said that she had drank “a lot more than normal” that day. Police officers examined videos from security cameras from the hotel showing Doe and Hegseth “walking together”, exiting the bar and heading towards the hotel pool, with Doe smiling. Doe told police that she remembers coming out of the bar and arguing with Hegseth in the pool about his behavior towards women at the conference and Hegseth told her he was “a good kid”. Police also interviewed a hotel employee, who said Hegseth seemed drunk, while Doe did not. Doe told police that the first thing she remembers after the fight was that she was in a hotel room with Hegseth. He told the police that Hegseth “he took her phone out of her hands”. He then said, “he tried to leave the room, but Hegseth blocked the door with his body.” He said he “remembered to say no often”, but did not remember much else, according to the report. Then he said, he remembers Hegseth on her in a bed or a couch. She later told the hospital nurse that “she could not remember whether or not there was sexual intercourse, but believes she was sexually assaulted at the time,” the nurse told the police. Hegseth, instead, told the police that the meeting with Doe was consensual. He said he was “drunk ” that night after drinking beer and remembered returning to his hotel room with Doe. Hegseth said that Doe “sit in the room and didn’t leave” and that it seemed “strange” that stayed in his room, according to the report. As the night passed, Hegseth said he made sure that Doe was “comfortable with what was happening between the two of them” and that there was “always” conversation and “always” consensual contact”. The two of them had sex, admitted. After having sex, Hegseth said, he had a “very clear conversation” with Doe, who told him that she would tell her husband that “she fell asleep on a couch in someone else’s room.” Hegseth told police that Doe showed “first signs of regret”, but did not give more details.