Federal prosecutors shared new details about allegations that former Speaker of the House J. Dennis Hastert molested four boys prior to his political career.
A court filing indicates Hastert sexually abused four victims, one as young as 14 years old, while he was a high school wrestling coach. During the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, Hastert had sexual relations with the underage victims, the documents state.
“Defendant used his position of trust as a teacher and coach to touch a child’s genitals and then undress and ask the child for a back massage in a motel room,” the prosecutors wrote of one incident.
Hastert, 74, was investigated last year after he was caught illegally structuring bank withdrawals to pay off the victims. He pleaded guilty to the charge in October, but suffered a stroke in November, which delayed sentencing.
The former Republican speaker, who served from 1999 to 2007, was not charged for the sex crimes due to statutes of limitations, but prosecutors have asked for a six-month sentence when Hastert receives his punishment for the extortion charges on April 27.
Hastert’s defense maintained he was blackmailed by those he abused and was forced to make financial payments to them to keep the matter quiet.
