False accusation of sexual assault created by Jacob Wohl

WASHINGTON – A young man from Michigan claims that he became an involuntary participant in the plot of right-wing provocateurs Jacob Wohl and Jack Burkman, aimed at denigrating the Democratic presidential candidate, Pete Buttigieg.

Hunter Kelly, 21, said he had had the opportunity to help President Donald Trump get reelected, but ended up giving the face of a false accusation of aggression. that Kelly claims not to want to participate.

"I am, from the bottom of my heart, very sorry for everyone involved in the very serious #MeToo movement," Kelly said in a statement on Tuesday. "I will continue to use my voice and honesty to make a difference." Jack Burkman may have promised me a lavish lifestyle, but at a price that would cost me the two most important things: l & rsquo; Honesty and integrity. "

This is the rightwing duo's first attempt to inflict a damaging charge on a presidential candidate by 2020. Buttigieg, mayor of South Bend, in Indiana, is a rising star of the Democratic primary. He made headlines by exceeding expectations for first-quarter funding and creating viral moments at several public meetings on television.

Wohl, a Trump supporter, admitted to attempting to launch disinformation campaigns against Democratic candidates in the 2020 elections during an interview with USA TODAY in February. Shortly after the publication of this story, Twitter banned Wohl. Wohl had created fake Twitter accounts to execute his plans, in violation of the terms of use of the site. In addition, Wohl created earlier this year a plot accusing Robert Mueller, special advisor, of sexual assault – which also proved to be a hoax.

According to Kelly's statement, Wohl contacted Kelly about a month ago on Instagram and on Signal, the secure messaging app.

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Wohl, however, said in an interview with USA TODAY that it was Kelly who contacted Wohl after he began "investigating rumors" of allegations of possible misconduct against Buttigieg. Wohl did not reveal the origin of the rumors, the evidence of rumors or the correspondence with Kelly to corroborate his claims. Wohl has recognized his hoaxes of the past as "things of the past".

On April 25, Wohl and Kelly had their first phone conversation, during which Wohl told Kelly that he could help gather opposition research on Buttigieg, according to Kelly's statement.

The 21-year-old agreed, urging Wohl to book a plane ticket on April 27, according to Instagram messages provided by Kelly. Wohl sent Kelly a ticket the next day from Grand Rapids, Michigan to Baltimore.

Wohl and Burkman later recovered Kelly at Baltimore Airport, and then went to Burkman's home in Arlington, Va., According to Kelly. At Burkman's home, the Conservative duo then presented Kelly with an article that Kelly said was "just a draft" detailing the charges against Buttigieg, Kelly said in her statement.

"I told him I was not sure what I was feeling," Kelly said of the post plan in the statement, adding that shortly after, he had sent a message to Wohl "via the Signal application that I was incredibly uncomfortable and that I did not agree with their plan ".

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Kelly asserted in a statement that he woke up Monday morning to post on Medium of a sexual assault charge, in which a man who called himself "Hunter Kelly" accused Buttigieg of sexual assault. The article was also promoted by a Twitter account with the pseudonym @RealHunterKelly, as well as the same name as the message and with Kelly's photo.

Wohl presented Kelly's photos, along with her school ID and Michigan driver's license, to USA TODAY, claiming that they had been taken to Medium to confirm that Kelly had authorized the publication of the message and that it was was not wrong after the website created the account. to post. Kelly did not comment on the photos and Wohl did not provide evidence that Medium had requested the photos.

The prosecution did not take long to appear on right-wing sites like Big League Politics and Gateway Pundit. In a few hours, however, the sites have published updated stories with Kelly's latest comments. In less than 24 hours, Twitter and Medium had already deleted these "Hunter Kelly" accounts at the time of publication. Twitter and Medium have not yet responded to requests for comment.

Kelly in a statement Monday night said the allegation was fabricated. According to Kelly, Burkman and Wohl drafted the article and the statement without telling him.

Kelly said in the US TODAY'S HUI in a text message Wohl and Burkman were behind the effort and confirmed that they were the men when they were shown photos.

Recognizing what had happened, Kelly said in a statement that he confronted Wohl and Burkman about it. He saidthey told him that leaving Burkman's home was "not an option" and offered to give Kelly gifts if he cooperated and signed a statement certifying the veracity of the allegations. Kelly signed the script reluctantly after declaring that he wanted to leave and feared that the statement was false. He then fled Burkman House once his sister, who lives in near Washington, came to get him.

Wohl and Burkman provided USA TODAY with a copy of Kelly's "statement of fact" detailing the allegations, with Burkman claiming that Kelly was his "client" as a lawyer. However, the "statement of fact" was also inconsistent with Medium's initial message, asserting that the alleged assault had occurred in Washington, DC, while Medium's message indicated that the assault occurred. was produced in Michigan.

The two Conservatives interviewed during their talks with USA TODAY said they believed Kelly's request, but could not provide any evidence beyond the signed statement. Wohl said without any evidence that he thought "Kelly's family is urging him to make increasingly bold statements to try to portray himself as, unfortunately, one of our victims."

Burkman and Wohl told USA TODAY that they refused to comment further on the evolution of the story.

Mayor of South Bend, presidential candidate 2020, Mayor Pete Buttigieg, speaks at a public meeting on Tuesday, April 16, 2019 in Fort Dodge, Iowa. (Photo: Charlie Neibergall, AP)

Buttigieg rejected the charges brought to journalists on Monday.

"I'm sure this is not the first time anyone will invent something about me – it will not throw us away," he said. "Politics can be ugly sometimes, but you have to face that when you're in presidential politics."

Erin Perrine, deputy communications director for the Trump campaign, has distanced President 2020's hoax campaign from Wohl and Burkman.

"This has nothing to do with the campaign and we condemn the false allegations, that they are directed against presidential candidates or candidates to the Supreme Court," said Perrine in a statement.

Political commentators and consultants from both sides of the alley denounced The last shot of Wohl.

Rick Wilson, GOP consultant, tweeted Monday: "The Wohl are not a family, they are a continuous criminal enterprise." Wohl was not charged with a crime.

Matt McDermott, a member of the LGBTQ Victory Fund Campaign Board, campaigned for Buttigieg to eliminate the false allegations.

"Do you want to fight fanatics like Jacob Wohl?" "Join me, RT and drop Pete Buttigieg $ 10," McDermott tweeted.

Another Democratic presidential candidate also came to Buttigieg's defense.

"Hey, @PeteButtigieg, hang in. Do not let the bastards shoot you down," commented Rep. Ryan on the hoax of the assault.

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