Donald Trump’s pick for US Defence Secretary, Pete Hegseth, was investigated over a sexual assault allegation in 2017, officials in California have confirmed.
Hegseth was never arrested or charged and denies wrongdoing.
“These allegations were fully investigated and Mr. Hegseth was cleared, ” his lawyer told CBS News, the BBC’s partner in the US. “This should not have any impact on the confirmation process.”
Hegseth, a Fox News host and veteran of the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, was a surprising choice for the top defence job because of his lack of management experience.
City officials in Monterey, California released a statement on Thursday evening saying they had investigated an alleged sexual assault at a hotel in the coastal city in October 2017.
The statement contained few details other than a report of alleged sexual assault that was reported four days after the incident allegedly took place at the hotel. The police report noted that no weapons or property were involved and that the complainant had “contusions to right thigh”.
“The City of Monterey will not be making any other remarks related to this inquiry,” officials said.
News of the investigation was first reported by Vanity Fair magazine.
Along with Trump’s other cabinet picks, Hegseth will face hearings and a confirmation vote in the Republican-controlled Senate.
“President Trump is nominating high-caliber and extremely qualified candidates to serve in his Administration,” Trump spokesman Steven Cheung said. “Mr Hegseth has vigorously denied any and all accusations, and no charges were filed.”
If confirmed for his role by the US Senate, Hegseth will arrive at the Pentagon with decisions to make on issues such as military assistance for Israel during its campaign in Gaza, and on support for Ukraine in the face of Russia’s invasion.
The US Defence Department has a budget of nearly $900bn (£708bn) and includes 2.9 million civilians and military service members around the world.
A conservative culture warrior, he has pledged to transform the military, but has faced questions about his management experience, although his supporters have argued that he would create change at the Pentagon.
Hegseth, 44, has been critical of diversity programs and women filling combat roles in the military.
On a recent podcast he said that any “general, admiral, whatever that was involved in any of the DEI [diversity, equity and inclusion] woke [expletive]” should be fired.
And he said that women should not serve in combat roles because, he argued, it had not made the military “more effective” or “more lethal”.
“Over human history, men in those positions are more capable,” he said.
A member of the Minnesota National Guard, Hegseth was stopped from serving as an officer in Washington DC during Joe Biden’s inauguration in 2021.
In a book published earlier this year he said he was turned down for the duty because of his tattoos including a Jerusalem Cross and another which reads “Deus Vult” – Latin for “God wills it”.
Both the cross and the phrase were used by Christian warriors during the Crusades. In modern times they’ve been used by right-wing Christians and Christian nationalists – but also by extremist and neo-Nazi and white supremacist groups, according to researchers. Hegseth has denied any connection to extremists.
Hegseth has seven children including a daughter born in August 2017 with Jennifer Rauchet, a Fox producer with whom he was reportedly having an extramarital affair. He later married Rauchet, his third wife.
