A hacker gained access Monday to a file containing the sworn depositions of two women involved in the investigation of Matt Gaetz, the former House member from Florida who is President-elect Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Justice Department, according to a source familiar with the matter and an email obtained by NBC News.
The file included the testimony of the woman who alleges she had sex with Gaetz when she was 17 years old in 2017, as well as the testimony of a second woman who said she witnessed the encounter, according to the source, who said the information is unredacted.
Attorney John Clune, who represents the woman alleging she had sex with Gaetz when she was 17, told NBC News, “We were informed last night by another law firm that an unauthorized user accessed a shared file with a number of confidential documents.”
The Justice Department investigated Gaetz in a case involving an allegation of sex trafficking of a 17-year-old girl. Gaetz has always denied the allegations and has never been criminally charged.
That probe effectively ended last week when Gaetz resigned from Congress after Trump picked him to be his nominee for attorney general.
The file was downloaded from a secure link by a person using the name Altam Beezley, the source said. It includes other related documentation that is under seal, and the hacker accessed hundreds of pages, the source said.
The news was first reported by The New York Times. NBC News is not reporting the women’s names.
It was not immediately clear whether any of the hacked information has been made public or whether law enforcement is investigating the matter. A representative for Gaetz did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A source familiar with the contents of the files characterized them as very detailed and damaging to Gaetz.
