Ex-prostitute says his decision to make Craig claim was difficult

By Sara Burnett, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published December 3, 2007 at 12:30 a.m.

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Mike Jones, the former Denver male prostitute who claimed a sexual relationship with the Rev. Ted Haggard last year, said Sunday he anguished over whether to go public with claims that he also had sex with U.S. Sen. Larry Craig of Idaho.

Jones was one of five men - four of whom gave their names - who claimed in Sunday's Idaho Statesman newspaper that they had sex with Craig or were recipients of his sexual advances. None of the accounts can be proven, and the newspaper admitted it is a case of "he-said, he-said."

In a statement Sunday, Craig, a Republican, called the report "completely false."

Jones said he shared his story because he was upset that Craig chose not to resign after initially saying he would, and that Craig keeps insisting he is not gay.

"I'm not the type to sit by and let things happen that are wrong," he said. "Not only do these people hurt themselves, hurt their families and the people around them . . . they hurt the gay community."

During a radio interview earlier this year, Jones said Craig had visited him in Denver - a statement a publicist for Jones later denied. On Sunday, Jones said he didn't mean to make the statement that day, and that the publicist issued the false denial because Jones had promised an exclusive to the Statesman.

Craig pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct after police said he solicited sex from an undercover officer in a bathroom at the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport. He is appealing his conviction.

Jones said he had one encounter with Craig, sometime between November 2004 and March 2005. The Statesman reported that Craig's records show he was in Denver and Keystone for two days in February 2005.

Jones, who advertised his services in local gay publications, said Craig came to his Sherman Street apartment after contacting him by phone. The senator kept his clothes on during the encounter, Jones said. He said Craig paid him $200.

He said Craig stood out in his memory because he was one of the few men in Jones' career who kept his clothes on during sex.

Jones also recalled that upon meeting, Craig asked him if he followed politics. When Jones said yes, Craig changed the subject. Jones said he didn't recognize Craig at the time, but when he later saw him on TV he recognized Craig immediately.

Jones denied that he is attempting to garner publicity and sell copies of the book he published about the Haggard case, as Craig staffers suggested.

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