FBI did not interview woman who accused Pete Hegseth of sexual assault in 2017: Sources
Hegseth has said the encounter was consensual and denied any wrongdoing.

By Rachel Scott, Katherine Faulders, and Luke Barr
January 14, 2025, 12:35 AM

The FBI's probe into defense secretary nominee Pete Hegseth did not include an interview with a woman who accused the former Fox News anchor of sexual assault in 2017, sources familiar with the situation told ABC News. ... The top senators on the Armed Services Committee were briefed on the FBI's background investigation last week but sources said investigators did not speak to the accuser.

A police report previously obtained by ABC News, stated that a woman -- who is identified only as Jane Doe -- told investigators in October 2017 that she had encountered Hegseth at an event afterparty at a California hotel where both had been drinking and claimed that he sexually assaulted her.

No charges were filed, although Hegseth subsequently paid the woman as part of a settlement agreement, which Hegseth's attorney, Tim Parlatore, said was only because Hegseth feared his career would suffer if her allegations were made public.

The agreement stated that Hegseth made no admission of wrongdoing in the matter. Parlatore said Hegseth was the victim of "blackmail" and "false claims of sexual assault" by an unidentified woman after a Republican women's convention in California on Oct. 7, 2017.

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