General From Chicago Spent Almost $3K at Strip Clubs, Charged It on Government Credit Card: Report

A U.S. Army general who was fired from his senior Pentagon post last year is accused of charging overseas strip club visits to the government in a Defense Department report that also claims the former military aide drank excessively and acted inappropriately toward women, according to The Associated Press.

Maj. Gen. Ronald Lewis — who grew up in Beverly, where his parents still live — was fired last year from his position as a senior military aide to Defense Secretary Ash Carter after the Defense Department's inspector general began investigating allegations of improper behavior during the general's business trips. The findings from that investigation were released in a 50-page report Thursday, Oct. 6.

Investigators claim Lewis used his government credit card to charge about $1,800 on bottles of champagne and other drinks at strip club in Rome, the report stated. He also is accused of using that same card to pay a tab of around $1,100 at a gentlemen's club in a part of Seoul called "Hooker Hill," which is off limits to U.S. military personnel, the report added.

The investigation findings went on to allege that Lewis had "improper interactions" with women during some of his trips, the report stated. A female enlisted service member told investigators that Lewis attempted to kiss her in his hotel room after a night of drinking, the report added. Although investigators found the general's behavior with women inappropriate, Lewis was not accused of having extramarital affairs or sex, according to the report.

RELATED: Army General From Chicago Fired From Top Pentagon Post

The general was critical of the inspector general's findings, calling them inaccurate and inflammatory. In his written rebuttal, Lewis claimed he never visited the club in Seoul and that he disputed the credit card charges there with the bank, which removed them, according to the AP.

Lewis, however, did accept responsibility for the charges in Rome, saying he only used his government account because his personal debit card wouldn't work, the report stated. But the general denied that the venue was a strip club and said it was respectable establishment, the report added.

Investigators said they re-examined the information they gathered in those incidents after receiving Lewis' explanations but that they still stood by their findings, according to the report.

Now, the inspector general's findings will go to his Army superiors, and they will decide if any punishment is necessary, the report stated. They also will decide at what rank Lewis can retire, the report added.

More via The Associated Press

Maj. Gen. Ronald Lewis, right (photo via Department of Defense)

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