Three South Carolina men, including the former fiancé of Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., were charged Wednesday in connection with an alleged sexual assault and voyeurism incident that the congresswoman detailed during a speech on the House floor in February 2025.

According to sworn statements from agents with the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, John Douglas Osborne allegedly committed sex acts on a 23-year-old woman who was incapacitated and intoxicated while Patrick Bryant, Mace’s former fiancé, and Eric Bernard Bowman watched.

Investigators allege the men discussed who would assault the woman beforehand, photographed and recorded the incident, and captured it on a home security system in Sullivan’s Island, an affluent suburb of Charleston. The woman had reportedly fallen into a swimming pool before passing out on a couch with a pillow covering herself.

Another woman who was watching the security feed allegedly witnessed the assault, took photographs, and documented what she saw in a journal, according to investigators.

Osborne, 46, faces charges of first-degree assault and battery and two counts of third-degree criminal sexual conduct. Bryant, 53, and Bowman, 46, were each charged with voyeurism.

Bowman faces additional charges of obstruction of justice and publishing the name of a criminal sexual conduct victim. Investigators allege he factory-reset a cellphone he knew authorities were seeking under a search warrant. He was also accused of posting the victim’s name and a video of her on X.

Bryant did not respond to a request for comment Wednesday. Attorneys previously listed as representing Bowman and Osborne in other cases did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The State Law Enforcement Division did not disclose whether its investigation into the men was continuing.

Mace publicly described the allegations during a nearly hour-long House floor speech in February 2025, saying she had discovered disturbing photographs and videos on Bryant’s cellphone while they were together. The couple was not yet engaged at the time of the alleged 2018 assault.

“I accidentally uncovered some of the most heinous crimes against women imaginable,” Mace said during the speech. “We’re talking about rape, non-consensual photos, non-consensual videos of women and underage girls, and the premeditated, calculated exploitation of women and girls in my district.”

Bryant denied the allegations at the time and said he would cooperate with any necessary legal proceedings to clear his name.

Following Wednesday’s charges, Mace issued a statement highlighting 25 bills she said were intended to protect victims of sexual assault, harassment and discrimination. Her proposals include measures addressing retaliatory defamation and libel lawsuits that can follow public allegations of misconduct.

Mace also introduced legislation this week that would require plaintiffs who bring certain cases and lose to pay the defendant’s attorney fees.

“Protecting women and holding predators accountable isn’t a slogan. It’s been one of my top priorities in Congress,” Mace said. “For too long, survivors have faced broken systems while predators exploited loopholes and walked free.”

Mace, a Republican who is leaving the House at the end of her term after losing her bid for governor of South Carolina, has made the treatment of sexual assault victims a prominent issue in her congressional work. The criminal charges now move the allegations she raised publicly into a formal legal process, though the accusations against the three men have not been proven in court.