A family member of the classmate whom Mitt Romney allegedly bullied in high school says she has no knowledge of the incident, according to news reports.
Christine Lauber, the older sister of former Romney classmate John Lauber, has told ABC News she was at college when the incident allegedly occurred while her brother, John, and Romney attended high school at the Cranbrook School, in Bloomfield, Mich.
The Washington Post story Thursday states Romney and at least one other classmate held down, then cut off the long, bleached-blond hair on Lauber, who was presumed to be gay.
Romney, the likely GOP presidential nominee, apologized for what he described as "hi jinks and pranks during high school."
Romney also told Fox News Radio that he doesn't recall that specific incident, which allegedly occurred in 1965, and that he certainly did not know the student was gay.
"I don't remember that incident," he said. "And I'll tell you I certainly don't believe that I ... thought the fellow was homosexual. That was the furthest thing from our minds back in the 1960s, so that was not the case."
Lauber reportedly died of liver cancer in 2004.
Ms. Lauber, of South Bend, Ind., said she and her sisters will likely issue a statement later today through their attorney.
She also said that if her brother were alive “he would be furious” about the story.
Ms. Lauber told ABC her brother was a “very unusual person.”
“He didn’t care about running with the peer group,” she said. “What’s wrong with that?"
“Even if it did happen, John probably wouldn’t have said anything,” Ms. Lauber added.
