Michigan Rep. Neil Friske, An Anti-Abortion Activist, Arrested For Allegedly Assaulting A Stripper & Chasing Her Waving A Gun

Rep. Neil Friske (R-Michigan), a well-known anti-abortion activist, claimed that he had been framed after he was arrested last week for allegedly assaulting a stripper and then chasing her down a street while carrying a gun.

Details surrounding state Friske’s arrest in Lansing, Michigan, remained vague on June 20 at 2:35 a.m., almost a week later. 

Police responding to reports of potential shots fired placed him in custody around 2:45 a.m., with a police spokesperson stating that he was suspected of “a felony-level offense.”

The Michigan Information and Research Service, a local independent news outlet, pointed to anonymous sources in reporting that the incident involved the Michigan representative chasing an adult dancer following a disagreement while he brandished a gun.

Records obtained by the Detroit Free Press show that Lansing police asked for charges of sexual assault, assault and a weapons-related offense against Friske pending an investigation. 

Friske claimed that the timing of his arrest was suspicious.

“As many of us know, Rep. Friske is always exercising his Second Amendment right,” his campaign said in a statement made on June 20. “We do not have any details besides what the media sourced, oddly before we knew anything.”

They also noted that it was “highly suspect considering the timing of this situation” as it took place “right before absentee ballots are released” and a “day after an unknown phone number conducted polling on the 107 [district] race between Rep. Friske and our opponent with deep-state ties.”

Friske was released without charge on June 22 but with an investigation into the matter proceeding. 

A significantly redacted police report shows that investigators are looking into possible first-degree criminal sexual conduct, Michigan’s most serious sexual assault charge.

Friske argued that he was set up but offered no evidence of the supposed effort to orchestrate his downfall or the unknown individuals allegedly behind the conspiracy.

“I did absolutely nothing wrong,” he stated. “And I’m sure when the police are done conducting their investigation, I will be completely exonerated. So far, this has not been a miscarriage of justice; it has been a miscarriage of the media.”

On June 24, he also argued that he was framed during an interview with Trucker Randy on his podcast, Your Defending Fathers.

“Just the way the events unfolded, it was very clear to me that something wasn’t right, and I was being framed – trying to be framed and being set up, and – and that’s how – that’s how these people work, you know, and – and it’s just so frustrating,” the representative stated. “It’s just so frustrating. It’s just amazing to me how desperate people are that they go to these kinds of lengths to try to destroy someone.”

Friske kept emphasizing his innocence in another statement he made on June 24.

“As Conservative Republicans, we are well aware of the biased media coverage of incidents involving us,” he stated on Facebook. “Despite their false narratives, I maintain my innocence.” 

“Due to ongoing investigation, there are details that I cannot disclose at the moment,” the representative added. “What I can say is that the police were called, resulting in being detained due to false accusations. However, upon initial investigation, no evidence was found to support the claims, and I was subsequently released with no charges. I am confident that this investigation will totally exonerate me.”

Friske, who is running for his second term in office this November, has represented Michigan’s 107th district ever since January 2023.

He was elected in 2022, defeating Democratic Michigan Rep. Candidate Jodi Decker with just over 56% of the vote.