Matt Lauer’s Ex Wife Annette Roque Responds to New Allegations

'Her priority and only concern is for their wonderful children'

Annette Roque (L) and Matt Lauer attend the 2013 Animal League America Celebrity gala at The Waldorf Astoria in New York City on Nov. 22, 2013. Mike Coppola/Getty Images

The ex-wife of Matt Lauer issued a statement after the former NBC host was accused of sexual assault in a soon-to-be-published book.

Annette Roque’s lawyer, John M. Teller, didn’t directly respond to the bombshell claims against Lauer.

“In response to your inquiry, our client has asked us to tell you that now that the parties are officially divorced, her priority and only concern is for their wonderful children,” he told People magazine.

“Our client will make no further statements,” the lawyer for Roque, a former model, told the outlet.

The two are parents to three children, Thijs, 12; Romy, 16; and Jack, 18.

Lauer was fired from NBC News for sexual misconduct in late 2017, but Variety reported that an NBC News colleague, Brooke Nevils, said Lauer sexually assaulted her while she was intoxicated.

In a lengthy statement on Wednesday, Lauer denied the allegations.

NBC "Today" show host Matt Lauer and wife Annette Roque arrive for Time Magazine Celebrates New "Time 100" list of Most Influential People In The World at the Time Warner Center on April 19, 2005 in New York City. Photo by Paul Hawthorne/Getty Images

The claim “is categorically false, ignores the facts, and defies common sense,” the 61-year-old wrote.

“Now she is making outrageous and false accusations to help sell a different book and stepping into the spotlight to cause as much damage as she can,” Lauer wrote, reported the New York Post. “But Brooke’s story is filled with contradictions. Which Brooke is to be believed?”

There are also people who can back up his claims, Lauer stated.

“There are people who fully understand the actual dynamic that existed between Brooke and me,” he wrote. “They have reluctantly and quietly reached out in the past two years and shared what they know ... I hope those people will understand that these allegations cross a serious line, and what they can share is a vital truth, even if it may seem unpopular.”

After he issued a statement, Nevils, 35, said his denial was tantamount to “victim-blaming.”

Matt Lauer attends NBC's 'Today' at Rockefeller Plaza in New York City on Nov. 20, 2012. Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images

“There’s the Matt Lauer that millions of Americans watched on TV every morning for two decades, and there is the Matt Lauer who this morning attempted to bully a former colleague into silence,” Nevins said, according to NBC News. “His open letter was a case study in victim-blaming. … I am not afraid of him now, regardless of his threats, bullying, and the shaming and predatory tactics I knew he would (and now has) tried to use against me.”

NBC News issued a statement about the matter, which was read aloud on the “Today” show.

“Matt Lauer’s conduct was appalling, horrific and reprehensible, as we said at the time. That’s why he was fired within 24 hours of us first learning of the complaint. Our hearts break again for our colleague,” the statement read.

Due to the graphic nature of the allegations, The Epoch Times has chosen not to include the details of the assault in the book, “Catch and Kill,” by Ronan Farrow.