JUST IN: Matt Gaetz’s Ex-Confidant Joel Greenberg Pleads Guilty, Admits to Sex Trafficking of a Minor

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Rep. Matt Gaetz’s (R-FL) former confidant Joel Greenberg has admitted to several crimes in court papers on Friday, including sex trafficking of a minor.

The New York Times first reported the news, also noting that Greenberg has agreed to cooperate with the Justice Department’s investigations into Gaetz.

While he did not implicate Gaetz by name, Greenberg admitted that he and other unidentified adults paid a 17-year-old girl for sex while also providing her with illegal drugs. 

According to the Times, Greenberg has confirmed that he “introduced the minor to other adult men, who engaged in commercial sex acts.”

Greenberg, a former Seminole County tax collector, also admitted to stealing money from local taxpayers, committing identity theft, and defrauding the federal government.

Greenberg, who is now facing 12 years in prison, was indicted in August on the charge of sex trafficking a child, and has reportedly been cooperating with the Justice Department since last year.

News of Gaetz’s possible relationship with a 17-year-old broke in March, as the Times reported that the Department of Justice was investigating the representative.

Gaetz has denied the allegations, claiming that he was simply generous when providing gifts to his former girlfriends.

This story is breaking and will be updated.