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Sen. Ruben Gallego breaks silence over claims of being in Eric Swalwell's viral video
Senator Ruben Gallego denied being in a video allegedly showing Rep. Eric Swalwell in a compromising situation, calling the claims misleading and false.
Democratic Senator Ruben Gallego from Arizona refuted claims that he was the man featured in a video shared on social media this week, which purportedly depicts Representative Eric Swalwell lying in bed with a woman.
Swalwell declared his resignation on Monday in wake of sexual assault allegations.
Meanwhile, Gallego dismissed what he referred to as misleading assertions spreading online about his due to his close ties with Swalwell.
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What does the video show?
The video seems to depict a man who resembles Swalwell, a Democrat from California, engaging in a kiss with a woman on a bed, while another man is seated on the same bed. HT.com has reviewed the video, which has been shared widely on social media in recent days, but has not confirmed its authenticity, source, or context independently.
Here's what Ruben Gallego said
On being asked about the video circulating on X, Gallego told media: “This is an example of the lies. No, I was not sitting next to him, I was not in the room, I was nowhere, I don't even know where it happened.”
“Right-wing political operatives are pushing this narrative that somehow I was in that room with Eric Swalwell, and that is an absolute lie.”
Eric Swalwell faces sexual assault allegations
The San Francisco Chronicle reported that Swalwell was accused of sexually assaulting a woman in 2019, when she was employed by him, and again in 2024. She stated that she was too intoxicated to give consent in both instances and refrained from reporting the incidents to law enforcement due to concerns that she would not be believed.
On Tuesday, a woman from California alleged that she was raped by Swalwell in 2018 and intends to file a report with law enforcement.
During a press conference, the woman, Lonna Drewes, claimed that the assault took place at a hotel in Southern California. She mentioned that she had consumed a glass of wine that evening and suspects that Swalwell may have drugged her prior to the assault.
“I did not consent to any sexual activity,” Drewes said.
On the other hand, Swalwell has maintained that the accusations are false.
