Kamal Ghorui
US Representative Tony Gonzales is at the center of a major scandal as a former staffer of Gonzales claimed that Gonzales had an affair with another staffer Regina Ann Santos-Aviles who died by suicide in September. Regina’s husband too supported the claim and said he found messages of very sexual nature from the Congressman on his wife’s phone. Gonzales, a married MAGA man and a Catholic father of six, earlier rubbished all gossips about the alleged affair though insiders said it was an ‘open secret’. But now in the wake of the new rumors, he issued a statement distancing himself from the scandal. “I am not going to engage in these personal smears and instead will remain focused on helping President Trump secure the border and improve the lives of all Texans,” Gonzales said.
Unpacking the Gonzales-Regina-Aviles rumor
San Antonia Express News reported that a former aide has now come forward with text messages as evidence showing that Gonzales had a relationship with Regina. The aide said Regina told him about the affair and how her marriage broke down after her husband discovered the messages with Gonzales. The aide claimed that Regina spiraled into a depression as Gonzales too cut her off after her husband found out their messages. This led Regina to set herself on fire. Adrian Aviles, the husband, said he heard rumors about their affair and then found his wife chatting with the Congressman. It was around May 2024. Aviles went through the messages and the Congressman apparently sought sexual photographs from Regina. Aviles told Daily Mail that Regina was coerced into the relationship and also considered filing a sexual harassment lawsuit. Aviles reached out to Gonzales’s team about the alleged affair and that’s when the team pushed Regina out; they gave her a month off. The husband and the wife separated and in September 2025, Regina set herself on fire. But the estranged husband believes it was an accidet and Regina would have never killed herself because she loved her son.
