WASHINGTON (AP) — The House Ethics Committee announced Thursday it is investigating Republican Rep. Chuck Edwards of North Carolina over allegations that he created a hostile work environment and engaged in sexual harassment.
Edwards, serving his second term in the House, said he welcomed the inquiry and planned to fully cooperate with the committee.
“I am confident the investigation will expose the facts, not politically motivated fiction,” Edwards said.
The investigation follows an Axios report stating that three sources told the publication that they witnessed conduct by Edwards toward two female staffers in their 20s that they described as inappropriate. The sources said Edwards’ behavior crossed professional boundaries and created an uncomfortable work environment. Axios said the sources were granted anonymity to protect against retaliation.
The Ethics Committee said in its investigation announcement that it would make no further public comment on the matter and that disclosing the review does not, by itself, indicate that any violation occurred.
The committee's investigation comes at a time of heightened scrutiny of lawmakers’ behavior toward female staffers following the resignations of Democratic Rep. Eric Swalwell and Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales. Both were facing calls for their expulsion before they stepped down.
FILE - Rep. Chuck Edwards, R-N.C, listens to testimony as the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Oversight holds a field hearing in Charlotte, N.C., Sept. 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Nell Redmond, File)
SEATTLE (AP) — A tourist from Washington state is facing federal charges after a witness recorded what prosecutors say was a video of him hurling a coconut-sized rock at an endangered Hawaiian monk seal just off a Maui beach last week.
Igor Mykhaylovych Lytvynchuk, 38, made arrangements to surrender in the Seattle area Wednesday as special agents with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration were seeking to arrest him, Assistant U.S. Attorney Aislinn Affinito in Honolulu said.
He is charged with harassing and attempting to harass a protected animal.
Lytvynchuk, who lives in Covington, Washington, was in U.S. District Court in Seattle on Thursday. A judge ordered him released pending another court appearance in Honolulu on May 27.
Greg Geist, a federal public defender who represented Lytvynchuk at the hearing, said Lytvynchuk hired an attorney in Hawaii, whose name was not immediately listed in the case docket.
Two supporters who attended the hearing declined to comment.
The video drew widespread condemnation and demands for prosecution in Hawaii, including from Maui’s mayor.
A state Department of Land and Natural Resources officer last week investigated a report of Hawaiian monk seal harassment in Lahaina, the community that was largely destroyed by a deadly wildfire in 2023. A witness showed the officer video of the seal swimming in shallow water while a man watched from shore.
“In the cellphone video, the man can be seen holding a large rock with one hand, aiming, and throwing it directly at the monk seal," prosecutors said in a criminal complaint. The rock, described by a witness as the size of a coconut, narrowly missed the seal's head, but caused the “animal to abruptly alter its behavior,” the complaint said.
When a witness confronted the man, he said "he did not care and was ‘rich’ enough to pay any fines," according to the complaint.
Maui Mayor Richard Bissen said the charges send a clear message that cruelty toward protected wildlife won't be tolerated. He identified the seal as “Lani,” a known and beloved character along Lahaina's waterfront, whose return after the wildfires brought a sense of healing and hope during a difficult time.
But the state natural resources department said in an email it likely was not Lani, as it lacked certain markings.
“Humanity and the instinct to protect what is vulnerable are still values people can unite around," Bissen said in an emailed statement.
The mayor said he called the U.S. attorney in Honolulu to advocate for prosecution.
Lytvynchuk is charged with violations of the Endangered Species Act and the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
Hawaiian monk seals are a critically endangered species. Only 1,600 remain in the wild.
If convicted, Lytvynchuk, faces up to one year in prison for each charge. He also faces a fine of up to $50,000 under the Endangered Species Act and a fine of up to $20,000 under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
Kelleher reported from Honolulu. Associated Press writer Audrey McAvoy in Honolulu contributed to this report.
This undated drivers license photo provided by the U.S. District Court of Hawaii shows Igor Mykhaylovych Lytvynchuk, from Washington state, who is accused of throwing a coconut-sized rock at the seal named "Lani." (U.S. District Court of Hawaii via AP)
This undated drivers license photo provided by the U.S. District Court of Hawaii shows Igor Mykhaylovych Lytvynchuk, from Washington state, who is accused of throwing a coconut-sized rock at the seal named "Lani." (U.S. District Court of Hawaii via AP)
FILE - Cars pass in front of the federal building housing the U.S. District Court in Honolulu on March 7, 2014. (AP Photo/Jennifer Sinco Kelleher, File)
