Matt Schlapp,\u00a0the chairman of the influential\u00a0Conservative Political Action Conference, is being sued by a former campaign worker for Georgia Senate candidate\u00a0Herschel Walker. The campaign worker claims Schlapp groped him without permission.
\nA lawsuit filed Tuesday\u00a0in the Virginia Circuit Court in Alexandria accuses Schlapp of \u201caggressively fondling\u201d the unnamed man\u2019s \u201cgenital area in a sustained fashion\u201d while the two were alone in a car on Oct. 19. The man is seeking $9.4 million in damages, according to\u00a0Politico.
\nThe staffer had accepted a drink invite from Schlapp as a networking opportunity, according to\u00a0NBC News, and was driving him back to his hotel when he says the CPAC head honcho placed his hand on the staffer\u2019s leg and \u201cbegan aggressively fondling Mr. Doe\u2019s genital area in a sustained fashion,\u201d according to the lawsuit.
\nThe staffer was \u201cfrozen with fear and panic,\u201d according to the lawsuit, but reportedly declined Schlapp\u2019s invitation to come up to his room.
\nWithin hours of the incident, the staffer recorded a video recounting the incident and shared it with Walker campaign officials, who got him in touch with a lawyer and said he didn\u2019t have to chauffeur Schlapp again, NBC News reported.
\nSchlapp contacted the aide the next day about a ride from the hotel. He responded that he \u201cwas uncomfortable with what happened last night,\u201d and said another driver would be working with Schlapp, according to screenshots shared with NBC News.
\nSchlapp texted back, \u201cPls give me a call,\u201d before repeatedly calling the staffer and later sending another text that read, \u201cIf you could see it in your heart to call me at end of day. I would appreciate it.\u201d
\nNBC News confirmed that the phone number that the texts were sent from was Schlapp\u2019s.
\nSchlapp denied the allegations in a statement from his lawyer, which he posted on Twitter after the lawsuit was filed. He claimed his family was \u201csuffering unbearable pain and stress\u201d due to the claim and was considering a countersuit.<\/p>\n