Manhattan DA Launches Sexual Assault Probe Against Eric Swalwell

The Manhattan District Attorney’s office has launched a sexual assault investigation into Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-CA), CNN first reported on Saturday.

The probe comes one day after a former staffer accused the California lawmaker of raping her; that report was soon followed by several other women coming forward and accusing Swalwell of sexual misconduct. 

A former staffer told CNN she woke up to Swalwell having sex with her in a New York City hotel room after a night of heavy drinking in 2024. She also told CNN’s Pamela Brown that Swalwell had also raped her in 2019 after another night of heavy drinking. 

“I remember the next day, I can see flashes of that evening, of him on top of me, me pushing him off, him grabbing me. It was a lot more aggressive — it was aggressive,” the accuser told Brown about the alleged 2019 rape. Her face was kept in the dark on camera. 

“Did you say no?” Brown asked her. 

“Yes, I said no. In the flash that I can recall, I was pushing him off of me saying ‘no,’” the accuser said. 

Her 2024 rape claim appears to be the basis for the Manhattan’s DA’s new probe. 

“We urge survivors of anyone with knowledge of these allegations to contact our Special Victims Division at 212-335-9373,” the Manhattan DA’s office told CNN in a statement. “Our specially trained prosecutors, investigators and counselors are well-equipped to help you in a trauma-informed, survivor-centered manner.” 

CNN’s interview came after the woman — who worked for Swalwell for nearly two years — accused him of raping her twice in a San Francisco Chronicle report on Friday. 

“Driving him to another event weeks later, she said Swalwell pulled out his penis in the car and asked her to perform oral sex on him,” the report said. “She said she did so in a parking lot. In September 2019, the woman said, Swalwell invited her out for drinks and she became so severely intoxicated that she does not remember the rest of the night. She said she woke up naked in Swalwell’s hotel bed and could feel the effect of vaginal intercourse. She said Swalwell distanced himself from her afterward and the relationship faded.”

Swalwell told the Chronicle, “These allegations are false and come on the eve of an election against the frontrunner for governor.” 

The Democratic lawmaker — who is running to replace Gavin Newsom (D) as California’s next governor — was hit with a wave of staffers quitting on Friday. 

Watch above via CNN.

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