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McEachin on link to Ashley Madison: ‘This is a personal issue’

Posted at 5:30 PM, Aug 26, 2015
and last updated 2015-08-26 17:31:29-04

RICHMOND, Va. — Two prominent Virginia lawmakers appear to be the latest high-profile names linked to the hacked cheating website Ashley Madison.

According to the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Republican Senate Majority Leader Tommy Norment and Democratic State Senator Donald McEachin both appear in records recently released by hacktivists.

McEachin told the paper in a phone interview “it’s not me” and that he was hacked.

The two appear to be the only local politicians who are among the 37 million users whose personal information was obtained by hackers.

When asked for comment by WTVR, McEachin sent the following statement.

“At this time, this is a personal issue between my family and me. I will have no further statement on this issue.”

Earlier this week, the son of Vice President Joe Biden denied that he had an account on Ashley Madison, despite an email address discovered on the hacked cheating website that matches one he used.

The lawyer and business executive said in a statement that he did not create the account that appears on the site.

“I am certain that the account in question is not mine,” Biden said in a statement provided to CNN. “This account was clearly set up by someone else without my knowledge and I first learned about the account in question from the media.”

The CNN wire contributed to this report.