On Saturday, Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple announced that his office would be launching an investigation into allegations against New York Governor Andrew Cuomo brought forth by one of his accusers.
The investigation, which Apple promised would be a "very comprehensive" investigation, could result in criminal charges against Cuomo if his office substantiates the sexual harassment allegations laid forth against him in the 165-page New York attorney general's office investigation report, according to The Blaze.
According to Apple, his office was contacted the same day the report came out by the lawyer of one of the alleged victims.
New York Attorney General Letitia James concluded that Cuomo had broken state and federal laws but did not comment on the prosecution.
"I cannot get into the nature of her specific allegations at this time, obviously. We're at the very infant stages of this investigation," Apple said on Saturday, Fox News reported. "We have a lot of fact-finding to do. We have a lot of interviews to conduct. And it would be totally premature for me to comment on any of that."
The alleged victim, identified only as Executive Assistant #1, filed an official report with the Albany County Sheriff's Office two days later, according to the New York Post.
According to the investigation report, Cuomo allegedly reached under the victim's blouse and "cupped her breast" when going in for a hug.
On Saturday, Apple stated that a powerful politician like Cuomo would not influence his investigation.
"I'm the county sheriff. I'm not going to be intimidated. I'm not going to be coerced," Apple said. "That would not play out well for anybody."
While Apple said it was "premature" to say whether Cuomo would be arrested or receive any criminal charges, Cuomo could face misdemeanour charges.
The investigation will be conducted with the Albany County attorney's office, with Apple saying that he has requested materials from the New York State attorney general's office.
A spokesperson for James' office, Fabien Levy, said the state attorney general's office would "cooperate fully with the Albany sheriff and turn over all evidence related to this complainant."