Warning: Graphic Images
A former New Jersey GOP aide allegedly orchestrated a violent assault on herself, involving a body-modification artist and an accomplice, and then falsely reported being attacked, according to federal prosecutors. Court documents describe the incident as a staged political stunt.
Natalie Greene, 26, was arrested Wednesday and charged with planning the staged attack at Egg Harbor Township Nature Reserve on the night of July 23, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of New Jersey announced.
Prosecutors said Greene claimed that three gun-wielding men confronted her and a friend on a trail around 10:36 p.m., threatened to shoot her, struck her in the head, hogtied her, slashed her face and body, and wrote political slurs on her skin because of her job.
Greene, a Rutgers law student, previously worked for Republican Rep. Jeff Van Drew, the New Jersey Globe reported.
According to court documents, two days before the alleged attack, Greene drove to Pennsylvania and paid a body-modification artist she found on Instagram $500 to deliberately carve wounds into her face, neck, chest, back, and shoulders. She allegedly provided the artist with a design she wanted carved into her body.
On the day of the alleged hoax, Greene’s accomplice called police, claiming she had been violently targeted. Officers found Greene in a wooded area with her hands and feet bound, her shirt pulled over her head, and words including “TRUMP WHORE” and “Van Drew is a racist” written on her body in black marker. She reportedly screamed that one of her attackers had a gun.
Prosecutors said hospital photos showed deep cuts across Greene’s body and face. Both Greene and her accomplice gave conflicting accounts to police and provided inconsistent descriptions of the supposed assailants.
Evidence recovered from Greene’s vehicle included black zip ties and duct tape. Officials said the accomplice had searched for “zip ties near me” online two days prior and purchased them at a Ventnor Dollar General.
“While Natalie is no longer associated with the congressman’s office, our thoughts are with her, and we hope she’s receiving the care she needs,” Van Drew’s office told the New Jersey Globe. Greene had joined his team part-time in 2022 and later served as a constituent advocate.
Greene faces charges of conspiracy to convey false statements and hoaxes, as well as making false statements to federal law enforcement. She was arraigned Wednesday and released on a $200,000 unsecured bond. If convicted on both charges, she could face up to 10 years in federal prison.