GOP Senate candidate Eric Greitens' ex-wife says he was physically abusive and she feared for her safety in new court filing: report

• Sheena Greitens accused former Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens, of physically abusing her.
• She made the allegations about her ex-husband, who is now running for the US Senate, in a new court filing.

Sheena Greitens accused former Missouri governor and current GOP Senate candidate Eric Greitens, her ex-husband, of physically abusing and threatening her and their children, according to a court filing on Monday, the Associated Press reported.

"Prior to our divorce, during an argument in late April 2018, Eric knocked me down and confiscated my cell phone, wallet and keys so that I was unable to call for help or extricate myself and our children from our home," Sheena wrote in a filing in an on-going custody dispute, the AP reported. "I became afraid for my safety and that of our children at our home."

Sheena, a public affairs professor at the University of Texas, wrote that Eric's behavior "included physical violence toward our children." These alleged actions included "cuffing our then-3-year-old son across the face at the dinner table in front of me and yanking him around by his hair."

Eric Greitens' Senate campaign denied the abuse allegations in a statement accusing Sheena of attempting to "vindictively destroy her ex-husband" in order to win full custody of their two sons and damage his political career. The campaign also called Sheena "deranged" and accused her of threatening to lie about her ex-husband while the two were married. The couple divorced in 2020.

In a later statement, Greitens did not repeat some of his attacks on his now ex-wife, but still called on her to "seek help."

"I will continue to love and care for my beautiful sons with all of my being, and that includes fighting for the truth and against completely fabricated, baseless allegations,"he said in a statement posted on Twitter.

Two of Greitens biggest challengers for the GOP nomination called on him to drop out of the race. Rep. Vicky Hartzler, who Sen. Josh Hawley endorsed, encouraged Greitens to "get professional help."

"Real men never abuse women and children. Period, end of story," Hartzler said of the allegations. "It's time for Eric to get out of the Senate race and get professional help."

Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt said in a statement that allegations were "disgusting and sickening."

"The behavior described in this affidavit is cause for Eric Greitens to be in prison, not on the ballot for U.S. Senate," Schmitt said in a statement released by his campaign.

US Rep. Billy Long, a loyal Trump ally, told the Kansas City Star that he would not call for Greitens to drop out.

In her sworn affidavit, Sheena Greitens claims that her then-husband threatened her when she sought care from a therapist.

"Eric threatened to accuse me of child abuse if I did not delete the emails and convince the therapist to delete them," she wrote in the filing.

At the time, Eric Greitens' governorship was imploding over a sexual-misconduct scandal. A woman that Eric admitted to having an extramarital affair with testified to Missouri lawmakers that Eric coerced her into sexual acts, including tying her up against her will. He admitted to having an affair, but denied those allegations. He later resigned in the face of an impeachment threat, but has since returned to politics and is seeking to replace retiring Republican Sen. Roy Blunt.

Some Republicans have shunned Eric Greitens' Senate campaign. But polling has shown the former governor is competitive for the GOP nomination. Hawley, who as state attorney general investigated the earlier alleged sexual misconduct, also called on Greitens to drop out.

"If you hit a woman or a child, you belong in handcuffs, not the United States Senate," Hawley wrote on Twitter.

Lucas Kunce, a Marine-veteran and Democratic Senate candidate, echoed the GOP calls for Greitens to drop out.

Sheena also claimed that people around Eric were concerned about the then-governor's well-being and his easy access to firearms.

"Multiple people other than myself were worried enough to intervene to limit Eric's access to firearms," she wrote, adding that Eric threatened self-harm "unless I provided specific public political support."

After the couple's divorce, Sheena moved to Austin, Texas where she took a position as an associate professor at the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs. She's seeking to move the custody case to Texas, the AP reported.

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.