New York Governor sexually harassed women, report finds

New York Governor, Andrew Cuomo sexually harassed multiple women, subjecting them to unwanted kissing and groping, an independent investigation has found.

Announcing the results of the inquiry, New York Attorney General Letitia James said Mr Cuomo had violated state and federal laws.

Mr Cuomo is yet to respond to the investigation but has previously denied wrongdoing.

The report is likely to play a major part in a separate impeachment inquiry.

The investigation was commissioned last year after several women came forward with allegations of sexual misconduct against the governor.

Investigators spent five months speaking to nearly 200 people, including staff members and some of those who made complaints against him. Tens of thousands of documents, texts and pictures were reviewed as part of the inquiry.

“The independent investigation has concluded that Governor Andrew Cuomo sexually harassed multiple women and in doing so violated federal and state law,” Ms James said.

Mr Cuomo, she said, had engaged in “unwelcome and non-consensual touching and making numerous offensive comments”.

Cuomo ‘ran finger down state trooper’s neck’

In one case, Mr Cuomo and his staff retaliated against a former employee who accused him of wrongdoing, according to Ms James.

Other women described being groped, kissed or sitting on the governor’s lap.

Mr Cuomo allegedly reached under the blouse of an assistant to touch her breast, while another aide said he asked her if she was open to sex with an older man.

The governor stood behind a state trooper in a lift, running his finger down her neck and saying “hey you”, according to investigators.

On top of the allegations of harassment, Mr Cuomo is accused of presiding over a “hostile and toxic work environment”.

Joon Kim, who co-led the investigation, said: “It was a culture where you could not say no to the governor and if you upset him or his senior staff you’d be written off, cast aside or worse.”

“At the same time the witnesses described a culture that normalised and overlooked everyday flirtations, physical intimacy and inappropriate comments by the governor,” he added.

Source: BBC