Thomas Frieden, the former director of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), was arrested in New York City on 24 August. He has been charged withof forcible touching, sex abuse and harassment.

Frieden turned himself in to police, according to the New York Police Department's Special Victims Unit.

According to the police department, a 55-year-old woman filed a report on 7 July accusing Frieden of groping her buttocks in October 2017.

Frieden, the former commissioner of the New York City Department of Health, led the CDC for eight years beginning in 2009 . He stepped down in January 2017 when US President Donald Trump took office. Frieden is now the president and CEO of Resolve to Save Lives, a non-profit group in New York City that aims to prevent disease epidemics and reduce deaths from heart attack and stroke. The group is funded by the Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.Resolve to Save Lives did not immediately respond to Nature 's requests for comment. It is not clear whether Frieden has retained an attorney.