Republican State Rep. Resigning After Allegedly Sending Nude Photos of Ex-Girlfriend to Other Men

Republican Illinois state Rep. Nick Sauer, who is, ironically, a member of the state House Sexual Discrimination and Harassment Task Force, is stepping down amid allegations that he posed as his ex online and shared her nude photos on the internet without her consent.

Politico reports that a complaint filed by Sauer’s ex-girlfriend, Kate Kelly, alleges that Sauer posed as her on Instagram “to catfish other men using my privately shared naked photos. Nick would use this account to direct message men with my photos to engage in graphic conversations of a sexual nature. The men believed they were communicating with me and Nick shared private details of my life.”

According to Kelly, the two met through Tinder after they matched in 2016, and started a long-distance relationship, but broke up in March because Sauer was cheating on her with other women. She says she first learned about the alleged incident when a stranger reached out to her on Instagram claiming that someone else was impersonating her. When she confronted Sauer, “He came to my house & confessed to catfishing men with my photos for 2 years to at least 8 men. He was unable to provide the names and begged that I let it go,” she wrote in the complaint.

The Office of the Legislative Inspector General did not confirm the claim, and the Chicago Police Department has not yet responded to Politico’s Freedom of Information Act seeking the police report Kelly claims to have filed. While it’s very hard to prosecute revenge porn cases, however, Sauer will no longer serve in public office.

State House Republican Leader Jim Durkin, who called the allegations “troubling,” announced Sauer’s immediate departure.

“He will be resigning from office today,” Durkin said. “We should allow the proper authorities to conduct their investigations.”