A singer who made headlines for wearing a Trump-themed dress to the Grammy Awards has filed a police report accusing the president's former campaign manager of sexual assault.
Joy Villa told Politico the incident happened during an invite-only gathering at Trump International Hotel in Washington, DC. A friend introduced her to Corey Lewandowski, who served as President Trump's campaign manager until he was fired in June 2016, and the pair took a photo together.
"I’m wearing this silver suit and stretchy pants, and after the photo, he smacks my ass really hard,” Villa told Politico. “It was completely demeaning and shocking."
Villa added that she half-jokingly threatened to report Lewandowski for sexual harassment, to which he allegedly replied "go ahead, I work in the private sector," then slapped her butt again.
The Washington, DC, Metropolitan Police Department confirmed a report was taken from Villa about the Nov. 28 incident.
Lewandoski responded to the accusations on Fox News, saying he would comply with an investigation.
"What I'm going to do is let the process play forward," he said.
Villa said she initially hesitated to come forward about the incident because she feared "that Corey could badmouth me," but ultimately decided to speak out after seeing numerous stories about sexual harassment in the media, politics, and other industries.
The report provided by police contained little detail on the incident itself, noting only that Villa, identified as J.V., told officers "she was the victim of sexual assault."
Lewandowski is no stranger to controversy. In March 2016 he was charged with battery for manhandling former Breitbart reporter Michelle Fields at an event in Jupiter, Florida. The charges were eventually dropped.
Multiple sources described to BuzzFeed News a pattern of aggressive behavior that allegedly included pushing a CNN reporter, physically confronting an aide from a rival campaign, shouting threats, making sexual comments about female journalists, and calling members of the press corps to make romantic advances.
When asked about the allegations last year, Lewandowski told BuzzFeed News "your story is inaccurate."
Villa has been a recording artist for years, but garnered extra attention this year when she wore a dress that displayed Trump's name and slogan "Make American Great Again." She has since explored a possible run for Congress, which earned her a congratulatory tweet from the president in October.