5th woman accuses Roy Moore of sexual misconduct

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A fifth accuser against Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore stepped forward Monday, alleging the politician sexually assaulted her in the US state of Alabama when she was a minor.

Beverly Young Nelson made the accusation at a press conference held Monday in New York City, accompanied by women's rights attorney Gloria Allred.

Attorney Gloria Allred stands with accuser Beverly Young Nelson, holding a sketch of herself made when she was 16 after reading a statement claiming that Alabama senate candidate Roy Moore sexually harassed her when she was 16, in New York, US, November 13, 2017. /Reuters Photo

Nelson came forward after a bombshell story published by The Washington Post last week, saying Moore once initiated sexual contact with a 14-year-old girl.

In the story, three other females said Moore pursued relationships with them when they were teenagers aged between 16 and 18.

But Moore has repeatedly denied those allegations and threatened to sue the Post for its reporting.

Nelson said Moore, then District Attorney of Etowah County in Alabama, forced himself on her and groped her in a locked car when she served as a waitress at a local restaurant at the age of 16.

Judge Roy Moore participates in the Mid-Alabama Republican Club's Veterans Day Program in Vestavia Hills, Alabama, US November 11, 2017. /Reuters Photo

"I trusted Mr. Moore because he was district attorney, I thought he was doing something nice to offer to drive me home," said Nelson.

Nelson said she fought off Moore in the car and he eventually gave up, but told her, "You're just a child, I'm the district attorney if you tell anyone about this no one will ever believe you."

Allred said that Nelson kept the attack secret for over four decades out of fear of Moore's power, while the accuser said she stepped forward now because "I no longer live in fear of him."

In an email to supporters, Moore's Senate campaign chairman Bill Armistead said Allred is a "sensationalist leading a witch hunt" against the candidate and is "only around to create a spectacle."

Accuser Beverly Young Nelson, who claimed that Alabama senate candidate Roy Moore sexually harassed her when she was 16, sits behind a signature by Roy Moore in her 1977 yearbook in New York, US, November 13, 2017. /Reuters Photo

Moore is an "innocent man and has never had any sexual misconduct with anyone," Armistead stressed in the statement.

Allred said on Monday that Nelson is "willing to testify under oath" to her statements against Moore as the attorney called for a public Senate hearing on the incident.

In the wake of the allegations, several GOP senators, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have called for Moore to step aside from the Senate race.

McConnell said the party is exploring whether a write-in candidate could be successful in the run-off special election next month.

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Source(s): Xinhua News Agency