WASHINGTON, Nov. 14 (Xinhua) -- A fifth accuser against Republican Senate candidate Roy Moore stepped forward Monday, alleging the politician sexually assaulted her in the U.S. state of Alabama when she was a minor.
Beverly Young Nelson made the accusation at a press conference held Monday in New York City, accompanied by women's rights attorney Gloria Allred.
Nelson came forward after a bombshell story published by The Washington Post last week, saying Moore once initiated sexual contact with a 14-year-old teenage girl.
In the story, three other females said Moore pursued relationships with them when they were teenagers aged between 16 and 18.
But Moore has repeatedly denied those allegations and threatened to sue the Post for its reporting.
Nelson said Moore, then District Attorney of Etowah County in Alabama, forced himself on her and groped her in a locked car when she served as a waitress at a local restaurant at the age of 16.
"I trusted Mr. Moore because he was district attorney, I thought he was doing something nice to offer to drive me home," said Nelson.
Nelson said she fought off Moore in the car and he eventually gave up, but told her, "You're just a child, I'm the district attorney if you tell anyone about this no one will ever believe you."
Allred said that Nelson kept the attack secret for over four decades out of fear of Moore's power, while the accuser said she stepped forward now because "I no longer live in fear of him."
In an email to supporters, Moore's Senate campaign chairman Bill Armistead said Allred is a "sensationalist leading a witch hunt" against the candidate and is "only around to create a spectacle."
Moore is an "innocent man and has never had any sexual misconduct with anyone," Armistead stressed in the statement.
Allred said on Monday that Nelson is "willing to testify under oath" to her statements against Moore as the attorney called for a public Senate hearing on the incident.
In the wake of the allegations, several GOP senators, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell have called for Moore to step aside from the Senate race.
McConnell said the party is exploring whether a write-in candidate could be successful in the run-off special election next month.
