INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. -- He investigated groping allegations against the attorney general.

He is crafting a first-ever sexual harassment policy for legislators.

He is also the same man who aggressively investigated the credibility of a former Statehouse intern who said she had a sexual encounter with him decades ago, according to our media partners at the IndyStar.

Indiana House Speaker Brian Bosma, an Indianapolis Republican and one of the state’s most powerful politicians, paid a law firm more than $40,000 in campaign funds this year in part to gather unflattering information about the former intern. Family members of the woman claim Bosma’s attorney threatened to reveal the unfavorable information about her if her account became public and to expose her name even if news organizations withheld it.

The woman, who was 20 at the time, did not accuse Bosma of a crime. Bosma denies the encounter took place. And the defense lawyer he hired, Linda Pence, denies the family’s claims and says she acted appropriately in investigating the allegation about her client.

Read more from our newsgathering partners at the IndyStar.

Bosma released the following statement in response to the story:

"This unsubstantiated story from over 26 years ago is unequivocally false. It wasn’t true then and it’s not true now. The source of this claim has been entirely discredited on several occasions and no responsible journalist would publish it. My engagement of Linda Pence, a well-respected attorney and Democrat, was for the purpose of protecting my reputation from a false story by the Indianapolis Star.”

A day after the story broke, a group of more than 60 Republican lawmakers and candidates announced their support for Bosma in a joint statement: