Republican congressman Jim Jordan has denied having any knowledge of sex abuse by an Ohio State University wrestling team doctor after wrestlers he coached more than two decades ago accused him of failing to stop the alleged molester.

At least five of the alleged victims have claimed that Jordan, an assistant coach for the Ohio State wrestling team from 1986 to 1994, knew about the abuse by the now-deceased doctor but ignored it.

Jordan appeared on Fox News Friday night and said that he had never heard about the allegations and would have reported them if he had.

'I never saw, never heard of, never told of any kind of abuse,' the 51-year-old said. 'We would've dealt with it if we knew of anything that happened.'

The conservative power-player and close ally of President Donald Trump added that if there were victims, they deserve justice.

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Republican congressman Jim Jordan denied claims from multiple former wrestlers that he was aware of the alleged sex abuse by an Ohio State team doctor in a Fox News interview Friday

Dr. Richard Strauss, who killed himself in 2005, has been described as a locker-room voyeur who unnecessarily groped athletes during medical exams and frequently showered with them

Jordan served as an assistant wrestling coach at Ohio State from 1986 to 1994 before pursuing a career in politics. Several men have said they told Jordan about the abuse directly

House Speaker Paul Ryan spoke out about the allegations on Friday, calling them 'serious'.

'These are serious allegations and issues,' Ryan spokesman Doug Andres said in a statement sent to USA Today.

'The university has rightfully initiated a full investigation into the matter. The speaker will await the findings of that inquiry,' Andres said.

In April Ohio State University announced it had opened an investigation into allegations that Dr Richard Strauss, abused hundreds, if not thousands, of student athletes across as many as 14 sports while working at the school from the mid-70s to late 90s.

Eight former wrestlers have detailed their experiences with the team doctor to AP.

Strauss has been described as a locker-room voyeur who unnecessarily groped athletes during medical exams and frequently showered with them.

Former wrestler Nick Nutter told AP that he and his teammates referred to Strauss by the nickname 'Dr. Jelly Paws'.

Strauss killed himself in 2005 at age 67.

No one has publicly defended him during the ongoing investigation.

Brian Garrett is one of the eight men who detailed the alleged sexual assault by Strauss to AP. He is pictured during an interview at his home in Powell, Ohio on Tuesday

Ohio State announced that it was investigating allegations against Strauss in April

The accusers say they complained about his behavior to administrators, but nothing was done to stop it.

Among those who allegedly had knowledge of the abuse was Jordan, who worked as an assistant wrestling coach before he got into politics.

Three of the victims told NBC it would have been impossible for Jordan to be unaware.

Mike DiSabato said he told Jordan about Strauss's behavior directly and was told: 'Please leave me out of it.'

'I considered Jim Jordan a friend, but at the end of the day, he is absolutely lying if he says he doesn't know what was going on,' DiSabato said.

On Friday, former UFC heavyweight champion Mark Coleman became the fifth Ohio State wrestler to claim publicly that Jordan knew about allegations.

'There's no way unless he's got dementia or something that he's got no recollection of what was going on at Ohio State,' Coleman told The Wall Street Journal. 'I have nothing but respect for this man, I love this man, but he knew as far as I'm concerned.'

The congressman's office has repeatedly denied that he was aware of the allegations and suggested that the timing is suspicious given that Jordan has been said to be a possible pick for House Speaker.

'Congressman Jordan never saw any abuse, never heard about any abuse, and never had any abuse reported to him during his time as a coach at Ohio State,' his spokesperson Ian Fury said in a statement to the DailyMail.com.

'He has not been contacted by investigators about the matter but will assist them in any way they ask, because if what is alleged is true, the victims deserve a full investigation and justice.'

Dunyasha Yetts, who wrestled at Ohio State in 1993 and 1994, said he and others also told Jordan about Strauss, who himself described the fondling as just 'doing his job', according to Yets.

Yetts said he complained about Strauss to his coach Russ Hellickson after being groped during three exams, and the coach told the doctor to stop such behavior.

Other wrestlers said Hellickson, who coached at Ohio State for two decades starting in 1986, expressed concerns to a Larkins Hall administrator about voyeurism at the recreation and training center, where they said Strauss and other older male faculty members and university employees were known to go to leer at athletes in the locker rooms, showers and sauna.

Hellickson said in a statement that he never ignored abuse of wrestlers.

So far more than 150 former athletes and witnesses have been interviewed as part of Ohio State's investigation.

The school urges anyone with information to contact the investigators from the Seattle-based law firm Perkins Coie.