Probe indicts New York Gov Andrew Cuomo of sexually harassing 11 women

The Governor of New York City, Andrew Cuomo, has been indicted by an investigative probe panel of sexually harassing 11 women in and out of state government and worked to retaliate against one of his accusers.

The result of the panel released on Tuesday, has hastened calls for the Democrat’s resignation or impeachment.

However, Cuomo has remained defiant, saying in a taped response to the findings that “the facts are much different than what has been portrayed” and that he “never touched anyone inappropriately or made inappropriate sexual advances.”

The nearly five-month investigation, led by two outside lawyers, concluded that 11 women who said that Cuomo had touched them inappropriately, commented on their appearance or made suggestive comments about their sex lives were telling the truth.

Those accusers included an aide who said Cuomo groped her breast at the governor’s mansion and a female state trooper on his security detail, who said he ran his hand or fingers across her stomach and her back.

Anne Clark, who led the probe with former U.S. Attorney Joon Kim, said the allegations were corroborated to varying degrees, including those by other witnesses and contemporaneous text messages.

On at least one occasion, the investigation found that Cuomo and his senior staff worked to retaliate against a former employee who accused him of wrongdoing.

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“These interviews and pieces of evidence revealed a deeply disturbing yet clear picture: Gov. Cuomo sexually harassed current and former state employees in violation of federal and state laws,” New York Attorney, General Letitia James said at a press conference on Tuesday.

The investigation’s findings, detailed in a 165-page public report, turn up the pressure on the 63-year-old governor, who just a year ago was widely hailed for his steady leadership during the darkest days of the COVID-19 crisis, even writing a book about it.

Since then, he’s seen his standing crumble with a drumbeat of harassment allegations, questions in a separate, ongoing inquiry into whether state resources went into writing the book, and the discovery that his administration concealed the true number of nursing home deaths during the outbreak.

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