Conan sidekick Andy Richter recalls Dennis Hastert’s chair

Conan O’Brien’s sidekick Andy Richter recalled a detail mentioned in the sex abuse allegations against Dennis Hastert

Comedian Andy Richter revealed that he remembers the chair that former House Speaker Dennis Hastert would place in front of the boys’ shower stalls in a series of tweets late Friday. The detail was mentioned in the court filing by one of Hastert’s accusers that was released earlier that day.

Richter, who is best known as Conan O’Brien’s longtime sidekick, stated that he attended Yorkville High School in Illinois where Hastert was a teacher and coach, and where the abuse is alleged to have occurred:

That came as reaction to a recollection by a then-17-year-old wrestler referred to as Individual D in court filings who later told prosecutors that he was molested by Hastert during a massage while staying after practice to cut weight. “Individual D recalled that defendant put a ‘Lazyboy’-type chair in direct view of the shower stalls in the locker room where he sat while the boys showered,” the document reads.

Richter went on to admit that the hadn’t thought about the chair in 30 years, though he said it wasn’t that upsetting to him now. But he did express surprise at how easy it was to do, and that no one questioned it at the time:

The Conan sidekick was elected Prom King during his time at the high school, which he attended between 1980 to 1984, and maintains ties to the town of Yorkville. Last summer, O’Brien even did a bit where he joked that it was Richter’s turn to be the hometown hero following Hastert’s fall from grace.

According to the Washington Post, Hastert has since apologized to his former students in a statement released Saturday by his attorney Thomas Green:

"“Mr. Hastert acknowledges that as a young man he committed transgressions for which he is profoundly sorry. He earnestly apologizes to his former students, family, friends, previous constituents and all others affected by the harm his actions have caused.”"

The allegations surfaced after Hastert pleaded guilty to breaking banking laws in connection to a $3.5 million payment he made to a man he sexually abused when he was a 14-year-old wrestler on Hastert’s team after he accused the victim of extortion. Prosecutors have now released a memo detailing a total of five former students who allege they were sexually abused by Hastert during his tenure as coach between 1965 and 1981. Hastert left the school in the 1980s to pursue a career in politics. The former lawmaker faces up to six months in prison for illegally structuring bank withdrawals, but the statutes of limitation on the sexual misconduct allegations have expired. He faces sentencing later this month.

Next: Conan O'Brien returning to New York to film Conan episodes

Richter has no qualms about voicing his opinion on Twitter regarding politics and other matters, but this marks one of the first times he has publicly commented on the Hastert scandal. Richter can regularly be seen on Conan weeknights at 11 p.m. on TBS. Next week’s guests include Kevin Nealon, Game of Thrones‘ Sophie Turner and Emilia Clarke, Quincy Jones, Aaron Paul, John Bradley and Jason Jones.