Pete Buttigieg slams false claim that separated him from family
Michigan police said no evidence to prove allegation that former US Transport Secretary posed a danger to his children
Pete Buttigieg, the former US transport secretary of Maltese descent, was forced to spend a night away from his four-year old children after an anonymous allegation against him as a parent which later proved to be false.
Police in Michigan said they found no evidence to substantiate the claim that he posed a danger to his children while Buttigieg believed the allegation was politically motivated.
Buttigieg, a Democrat widely touted as a potential US president, revealed the ordeal in a post on Substack, saying it was “among the darkest hours of my life”.
He said the anonymous caller had contacted the Child Protective Services, alleging he was a danger to his children, soon after he shared photos of his family on social media for Father’s Day.
"The caller said that he had spoken to a woman who claimed to have met me at a conference several years ago in Alabama, where she said I told her that I had committed unspeakable violent crimes, and the caller believed my children were still at risk," Buttigieg said.
Buttigieg was told by police he could not be alone with his children until they conducted forensic interviews with his four-year-old twins.
“I cannot describe the mix of rage and sadness that I feel at the idea that someone brought our children into this. They are four years old. Four. They do not know or care what a Democrat of a Republican is,” he said.
However, he pointed out the officer who came to his home “made clear that he believed this was politically motivated” and that it would not be referred to a prosecutor.
"Their time and resources were wasted in a cruel, politically motivated hoax that harmed our family," Buttigieg wrote.
Michigan State Police told the BBC: "This week, the Michigan State Police received an anonymous report. The Michigan State Police and Child Protective Services responded and determined the report was false."
This is not the first time Buttigieg has been the target of LGBTIQ attacks. He and his husband Chasten became parents in 2021 when they adopted fraternal twins Joseph August and Penelope Rose.
Buttigieg is the son of prominent literary critic Joseph Buttigieg, who migrated from Malta in the 1970s.