Who is ex-Trump aide Matt Gaetz and why is the US Justice Dept investigating him?

Gaetz, a long-time ally of President-elect Donald Trump, had been propped up in early November to become the new Attorney General. He decided to withdraw himself from the process once it became clear he was unlikely to be confirmed by the Senate for the role.

Gaetz has consistently denied the allegations against him. In a post on X, he claimed to be “exonerated” by the House Committee in the past and that he “NEVER had sexual contact with someone under 18.”

The Biden/Garland DOJ spent years reviewing allegations that I committed various crimes.

I was charged with nothing: FULLY EXONERATED. Not even a campaign finance violation. And the people investigating me hated me.

Then, the very “witnesses” DOJ deemed not-credible were…

— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) December 18, 2024

Who is Matt Gaetz? What does the committee report reveal about his misconduct as an elected official? We explain.

Who is Matt Gaetz?

Matt Gaetz is a three-time congressman. The 42-year-old served as the House Representative for Florida’s first congressional district from 2017, until he stepped down last month. He hails from a line of conservative politicians – both his father, Don Gaetz, and grandfather, Jerry Gaetz, have served as senators in the past.

Once dubbed ‘Baby Gaetz,’ he has practised law since 2008, when he joined the Florida Bar. He has also been annoounced as a political talk show on the One America News Network from January 2025.

He established himself as a staunch ally of Donald Trump as a TV panelist on conservative news outlets like Fox News. He has consistently defended Trump through his legal cases, and stood by his claims about Haitian migrants eating pets. The New York Times in 2021 said that Gaetz offered Trump “fierce loyalty and a taste for bare-knuckle political combat” as a backbencher in Congress.

How did Gaetz come under the scanner?

In 2021, The NYT reported that the Department of Justice (DoJ) had opened an investigation into Gaetz in the last days of Trump’s first administration, under Attorney-General William Barr.

Gaetz reportedly came under the radar as part of a broader investigation into his friend and political ally, Joel Greenberg. He was indicted in 2022 on charges including underage sex trafficking, financially supporting people in exchange for sexual favours, stalking and identity theft. The former tax commissioner cooperated with federal investigators and reportedly furnished information against Gaetz in the process. Greenberg was sentenced to 11 years in prison.

The DoJ was investigating Gaetz in 2021 following allegations he had violated several state laws, including a sexual relationship with a minor, according to The NYT. While Gaetz then described the investigation as part of an elaborate conspiracy to extort his family for $25 million, he also reportedly sought blanket pre-emptive pardons from Trump for any crimes he may have committed. Trump has refuted such reports.

As an approver, Greenberg reportedly furnished investigators with proof of financial transactions and thousands of photos, videos and messages. Greenberg would supposedly introduce young women he met on SeekingArrangement.com – a “sugar dating” website connecting older men and younger women seeking “mutually beneficial relationships” – to Gaetz. The women would attend parties at Greenberg’s invite and engage in sex for monetary compensation.

The committee reportedly spoke to over a half dozen witnesses who attended parties, events, and trips with Representative Gaetz between 2017 and 2020. “Nearly every young woman that the Committee interviewed confirmed that she was paid for sex by, or on behalf of, Representative Gaetz,” the report says.

The committee voted earlier this month to release its findings in an unprecedented move, revealing its findings on Gaetz, who is no longer a member of Congress. On Monday, he filed a last-ditch suit to try and stall its release, but in vain.

What are the key takeaways from the report?

On soliciting commercial sex: The committee concluded that between 2017 and 2020, Gaetz had routinely solicited commercial sex including through date-for-hire arrangements, in violation of Florida state law. He paid women directly, through Greenberg, or spent on them otherwise with the tacit implication of sexual favours.

On one occasion, he reportedly engaged in “sexual activity” with a 17-year-old girl, but he was not aware that she was a minor at the time. However, the committee concluded that he had not violated sex trafficking laws.

On the use of illegal drugs: The report says Gaetz had used or possessed illegal drugs, including cocaine and ecstasy, on multiple occasions between 2017 and 2019. The report also says that Gaetz and his associates made drugs available to the women they had met in lieu of sexual favours. Additionally, Gaetz had reportedly accepted gifts of transportation and lodging related to a 2018 trip to the Bahamas, exceeding permissible amounts.

Other allegations: Gaetz is accused of offering special privileges to people “he was in a special relationship with”. The committee has also accused him of deliberately obstructing the Committee’s investigation into his conduct.