Beckwith: ‘Hit Piece’ Report on Deepfake Not True
INDIANAPOLIS — Indiana Lt. Governor Micah Beckwith is denying a report that a staffer and contract attorney in his office watched a deepfake pornographic video involving a state lawmaker’s wife.
Beckwith called the story, published by 24sight News, a “hit piece” and said he conducted his own internal investigation after learning about the claim over the weekend.
“The first I heard of this was over the weekend,” Beckwith told WIBC. “They call us and they say, there’s people in your office apparently back in April that saw a deepfake video about a representative’s wife and laughed about it and never reported it.”
Beckwith said no one ever told him the video was shown in his office and pushed back on the 24sight News report by journalist Tom LoBianco.
“That’s not true. Never happened,” Beckwith said. “I did my own internal investigation with my team because if that’s happening in my office, we’re going to deal with it. And I’ve been very clear that any inappropriate activity like that will get you fired real quick.”
According to 24sight News, the video was shown in the lieutenant governor’s office on April 10 and featured the wife of State Representative Craig Haggard. The report says Gregg Puls, Beckwith’s deputy chief of staff, and contract attorney Devin Norrick were present when the video was viewed.
Haggard confirmed in a statement to 24sight News that the video targeted his wife, saying he and his wife were “outraged and saddened” by what he called a “pornographic smear.” He also criticized statehouse leadership for focusing more on finding leaks than supporting those impacted by the video.
Under Indiana law, it is a misdemeanor to possess or share non-consensual sexual deepfakes. A federal law signed in May makes it a felony punishable by up to two years in prison.
LoBianco defended his reporting during an interview with WIBC’s Kendall and Casey, saying the original story was based on multiple sources.
“Beckwith, as I report in today’s story, has undergone a leak investigation. He’s trying to find out who’s been talking to me,” LoBianco said. “I would not have published the original story or this follow-up without confirmation from multiple sources in different corners.”
The Marion County Prosecutor’s Office has not confirmed whether Beckwith’s office is part of the ongoing investigation.
Beckwith, for his part, said he welcomes a full investigation.
“I want them to do their job,” he said. “I’m confident my office had nothing to do with it. I do have big concerns about deepfake videos. I think everybody does.”
