HOUSTON (AP) \u2014 U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales of Texas claimed Thursday he was being \u201cblackmailed\u201d following a report he allegedly had an affair with a former staffer who later died after she set herself on fire.<\/p>\n
The claim by the married Republican congressman comes after the San Antonio Express-News<\/a> reported that it had obtained text messages in which the former staffer, Regina Ann Santos-Aviles, wrote to a colleague that she had an affair with the lawmaker. <\/p>\n The Associated Press has not independently obtained copies of the messages. On Thursday, an attorney for Adrian Aviles, Santos-Aviles\u2019 husband, said the husband had found out about the affair prior to his wife\u2019s death. <\/p>\n A spokesperson and an attorney for Gonzales, who is running for reelection in Texas\u2019 March 3 primary, did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment. On social media, the congressman posted a partial screenshot of an email from the husband\u2019s attorney and accused him of seeking money. <\/p>\n \u201cI WILL NOT BE BLACKMAILED,\u201d Gonzales wrote in a post on the social media site X on Thursday. \u201cDisgusting to see people profit politically and financially off a tragic death.\u201d<\/p>\n In the email posted by Gonzales, attorney Robert Barrera discussed a possible lawsuit against the lawmaker and a potential settlement with a nondisclosure agreement. The email says that the maximum recoverable amount is $300,000.<\/p>\n Barrera denied he was trying to blackmail Gonzales.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is a desperate attempt to make him look again like a political victim,\u201d Barrera told The AP in a phone interview on Thursday. \u201cThere\u2019s no blackmail here. I mean, it\u2019s just ridiculous allegations.\u201d<\/p>\n Regina Ann Santos-Aviles, 35, died in September 2025 after setting herself on fire in her backyard at her home in Uvalde. The Bexar County Medical Examiner\u2019s Office later ruled her death as a suicide by self-immolation.<\/p>\n Gonzales, whose district stretches from San Antonio to El Paso and runs along the U.S.-Mexico border, has six children with his wife<\/p>\n According to Barrera, the email that Gonzales posted online was part of back-and-forth discussions he had been having with the lawmaker\u2019s attorney after Aviles decided he wanted to recover damages through a potential lawsuit on behalf of his wife under the Congressional Accountability Act.<\/p>\n The act provides legal protection for employees in the legislative branch against harassment, discrimination or retaliation.<\/p>\n Barrera claimed that after discovery of the alleged affair, Gonzales retaliated against Santos-Aviles by dramatically restricting her job duties and privileges and restricting her job advancement.<\/p>\n Gonzales has been endorsed by President Donald Trump and is facing a primary challenge from Brandon Herrera, who narrowly lost to Gonzales in 2024. Herrera has called on Gonzales to resign in wake of the report. <\/p>\n