Pete Hegseth, President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of defense and a former Fox News host, was investigated in 2017 over "an alleged sexual assault" at a California hotel that was hosting a gathering of Republican women, police said Friday.
NBC News reports that Hegseth was not charged with a crime and the city of Monterey police, in its statement citing a police report, did not release any information about the alleged victim, who reported the incident on Oct. 12 of that year.
Police said the alleged assault occurred sometime between midnight Oct. 7 and 7 a.m. on Oct. 8 at the address of the Hyatt Regency Monterey Hotel and Spa on Del Monte Golf Course.
The National Federation of Republican Women was holding a convention at the hotel at the time, according to the organization's website.
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The allegation, which was first reported by Vanity Fair, came as Hegseth recently drew fire for, among other things, saying that he believes women should not serve in combat and that he wants to see the military purged of “woke” officials who support diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
Hegseth's lawyer, Timothy Parlatore, said that "the police statement speaks for itself."
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"He was cleared," Parlatore said in a telephone interview. "There's not much more that I can say. It didn't happen."
Trump communications director Steven Cheung released a statement defending Hegseth.
"President Trump is nominating high-caliber and extremely qualified candidates to serve in his Administration," Cheung wrote. "Mr. Hegseth has vigorously denied any and all accusations, and no charges were filed. We look forward to his confirmation as United States Secretary of Defense so he can get started on Day One to Make America Safe and Great Again."
Fox News, the National Federation of Republican Women and Hyatt Regency hotels did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Hegseth's last day at Fox News was Tuesday, the day of Trump’s announcement, the network said earlier.
Hegseth, 44, is a combat veteran who was a captain in the Army National Guard. He served overseas in Afghanistan and Iraq, as well as at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.
He began working at Fox News in 2014 and began co-hosting “Fox & Friends Weekend” in 2017.
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