As part of its ongoing investigation into Rep. Matt Gaetz, the House Ethics Committee recently issued a subpoena for documents from a civil lawsuit filed by one of the member’s longtime friends of Congress against several third parties, ABC News has learned.

The subpoena, which has not been previously reported, seeks all documents related to Gaetz that are part of a lawsuit filed last year by Gaetz’s longtime friend, the prominent Florida lobbyist Chris Dorworth, who claimed he was defamed by multiple third parties during the years-long sex trafficking investigation into Gaetz, sources told ABC News.

The trial documents, which include witness testimony and affidavits, could provide Congress with new details about allegations that have dogged Gaetz for years, including the allegation that he had sex with a minor who allegedly introduced by her former friend Joel Greenberg, who pleaded guilty to sex trafficking and is serving an 11-year prison sentence.

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Gaetz has long denied any wrongdoing. Last year, after a years-long investigation, the Justice Department declined to bring charges against the congressman.

Last week, Gaetz said he would no longer voluntarily participate in the House ethics investigation, which he called an “exercise in political vengeance,” and said he recently learned that the committee had issued – but had not yet served him – a subpoena for his testimony.

The Florida congressman also reiterated his denial that he ever had sex with a minor. “Your September 4 correspondence asks whether I have had sexual relations with anyone under the age of 18. The answer to this question is an unequivocal NO. You can apply this answer to every version of this question, on every forum” , Gaetz said in a statement. statement to the committee posted on social media.

Members of the House Ethics Committee declined to comment to ABC News. Representatives for Gaetz did not respond to a request for comment.

When reached for comment, Greenberg’s attorney, Fritz Scheller, told ABC News: “While I am reluctant to comment on an ongoing congressional investigation, Joel Greenberg’s position remains the same. He will cooperate fully with all congressional investigations, whether by subpoena or not. and it doesn’t matter whether the cooperation takes place in the rain or on a train, with a fox or in a box, yes, Mr. Greenberg will cooperate fully here or there, he will cooperate anywhere.

Among the documents related to the civil trial, according to court records, are the deposition of the woman Gaetz allegedly had sex with when she was a minor, as well as testimony from another woman who was a witness in the DOJ investigation, as well as that of Dorworth. deposition and an affidavit from Gaetz’s former girlfriend. These documents could be turned over to Congress as part of its ongoing investigation into related allegations.

The documents sought by Congress come from a lawsuit filed last year by Dorworth, who alleged that the former miner, identified in the suit only as “AB,” and others, including Greenberg and his family, worked to defame him as part of the Justice Department’s investigation. .

Gaetz, who was not a party to the lawsuit, was scheduled to sit for his own testimony as a witness in the trial before Dorworth dropped the suit in early September. Dorworth has another defamation lawsuit pending against the Greenbergs in state court.

It is unclear if and what documents were provided to Congress. And while many trial documents, including depositions and affidavits, remain sealed, recent court filings have shed light on alleged details that could be included in the underlying documents requested by Congress .

One filing, Exhibit 23 of a motion for attorney fees filed by attorneys representing the Greenbergs, details some of the allegations made during discovery in the trial, including that Gaetz was allegedly among the guests at a party in July 2017 at which “AB”, who was 17 at the time, was also present. The filing states that, according to a woman who attended the party, there was “alcohol, cocaine, ecstasy also known as Molly and marijuana,” that there was “access to rooms” for “sexual activities” and that AB was seen naked during the gathering.

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In July, the House Ethics Committee released a rare statement updating the status of its investigation into Gaetz. The committee said it had stopped looking into some allegations, including whether the Florida congressman misused state identification documents or accepted a bribe or improper gratuity, but that its investigation had found that other allegations “merited continued investigation.”

The committee said it would continue to examine allegations that Gaetz “engaged in sexual misconduct and illegal drug use” and that he “sought to obstruct government investigations into his conduct.” .

In Gaetz’s statement last week regarding the committee’s investigation, he reiterated his denial of any wrongdoing while apparently answering a series of questions the committee asked him earlier in the month.

In response to the question of whether or not he had ever used illegal drugs, Gaetz said: “I have not used illegal drugs, absent a law permitting their use in any state jurisdiction -United. I have not used “illicit” drugs, which I would consider illegal drugs for medical or over-the-counter use anywhere in the United States.

House Ethics Committee subpoenas documents from lawsuit filed by Gaetz’s friend: sources originally appeared on abcnews.go.com