Forged document falsely accuses Chuck Schumer of sexual harassment

A forged 13-page document accusing Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) of sexual harassment was circulated to several major media outlets in an attempt to discredit Schumer and the publications, Axios reported Tuesday.

Axios says the document, a password-protected PDF, had the file name "Schumer_Complaint," and looked like a lawsuit that had been filed in U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. It named a former Schumer staffer, who worked in his office from 2009 to 2012; when approached by Axios, the woman said she had never seen the document before and the claims are "completely false, my signature is forged, and even basic facts about me are wrong. I have contacted law enforcement to determine who is responsible. I parted with Sen. Schumer's office on good terms and have nothing but the fondest memories of my time there."

Schumer's communications director, Matt House, also told Axios the document is fake and "every allegation is false. We have turned it over to the Capitol Police and asked them to investigate and pursue criminal charges because it is clear the law has been broken." A person close to Schumer told Axios there are several claims in the document that can easily be discredited, like the allegation Schumer acted inappropriately on Sept. 16, 2011, in Washington; he was actually in New York City at the time.