Trump Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth denies the sexual assault allegation and acknowledges payment to the accuser

The lawyer for former Fox News host Pete Hegseth confirmed to NBC News on Sunday that Hegseth, who has been named by President-elect Donald Trump as his nominee for secretary of defense, paid a woman an undisclosed sum after she accused of assault.

“In 2023, Hegseth paid the complainant as part of a civil confidential settlement agreement and maintained his innocence,” Timothy Parlatore, Hegseth’s attorney, said in a statement.

He also denied that the encounter between Hegseth and an unnamed woman, which she said took place in 2017, was sexual abuse.

Parlatore’s statement comes after The Washington Post on Saturday reported that a friend of Hegseth‘The prosecutor sent a memo to the Trump transition team with details of the allegations.

NBC News has not independently reviewed the memo, but Parlatore confirmed it is related to a meeting Hegseth and the unnamed woman had in Monterey, California, during a California Federation of Republican Women conference.

The Post reported that the memo stated that the woman was at the conference with her husband and her children and “didn’t remember anything until she was in Hegseth’s hotel room and then stumbled to find her hotel room” on the night in question.

Parlatore denied the allegation, saying: “This is a situation where a consensual meeting took place and the woman unfortunately had to concoct a lie to explain why the woman had not returned to her husband’s room that evening.”

‘It wasn’t reported until days later, until pressure came from her husband. It was fully investigated by police and video surveillance, and multiple eyewitness statements indicate she was the aggressor,” he added.

Authorities in Monterey investigated the allegation in 2017 and did not file charges against Hegseth.

Parlatore also called his client “completely innocent” and accused the woman of “trying to extort Mr. Hegseth for money.”

Before Hegseth officially becomes defense secretary, he will have to win a Senate majority through a confirmation vote.

On Sunday, Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla., told NBC News’ “Meet the Press” that “I think he’s a good choice.”

Still, he added that the Senate should deliberate and review Hegseth’s record before a vote.

“But again, if allegations come out, as the Senate moves forward with the advice and consent of the President of the United States and fulfills our constitutional duties, we will find out whether he can be confirmed. or not. And I think Pete is a good choice for this position,” Mullin said.

This article was originally published on NBCNews.com