The recent scandal involving a staffer for U.S. Sen. Ben Cardin filming himself engaged in a sex act with another man in a Senate hearing room was apparently not the first.
An earlier instance of such conduct in the House of Representatives had been brought to the attention of Capitol authorities in the past two years, reported Semafor.
The alleged revelation comes from a spokesperson for Rep. Dan Newhouse (R-WA), who told Semafor that another set of sex videos made by staffers on Capitol grounds had been circulated on Snapchat in 2022, purportedly featuring one of his staff members.
Semafor described two videos, with one apparently including a man masturbating inside a House office building and the other of two men engaged in sex in an office setting.
Once the videos were discovered, the spokesperson for Newhouse told Semafor, an investigation was launched in June of 2022.
“As soon as the office was alerted, we immediately contacted the appropriate House entities to conduct an independent investigation,” the spokesperson said before adding, “The office will not be providing further comment on personnel matters.”
The investigation returned “no conclusive evidence,” according to the spokesman.
Semafor reportedly communicated with the investigated staffer, whose identity the outlet did not publish. The staffer said he was told he was being investigated but that the probe ended with Newhouse informing him that “no evidence to the allegation” was found. He claimed that he left the staff job in the fall of 2022 on good terms, with the congressman having praised his time with his team.
The Sen. Cardin (D-MD) staffer involved in the video that made headlines last week was a legislative aide named Aidan Maese-Czeropski, as reported by The Dallas Express. Capitol Police are investigating the recent incident.