New, unconfirmed details emerged this weekend about how the FBI uncovered former CIA Director David Petraeus’ affair with one of his biographers, Paula Broadwell.
The FBI reportedly received a complaint from a third party who claimed to have been the target of harassing emails from Broadwell. The agency’s investigation apparently broadened when it discovered that Broadwell or another individual may have attempted to access Petraeus’ email account.
When the FBI looked further into the matter, according to the conservative website Newsmax, investigators found thousands of emails between the former general and Broadwell, including one that allegedly detailed his fantasy of engaging in sex under his office desk.
“I’m not sure anyone really ‘knew,’ per se,” a senior military source who has worked with Petraeus told Business Insider. “But it’s one of those things that, as soon as the announcement was made, I knew in an instant who it was.”
Petraeus and Broadwell reportedly continued sharing emails even after the affair ended a few months ago.
UPDATE, 5:50 p.m.: The woman who was threatened by Broadwell via email is 37-year-old Jill Kelley, of Tampa, Fla., the Associated Press has reported. Kelley is reportedly an unpaid liaison to the State Department who is assigned to the Joint Special Operations Council.
The emails Kelley received from Broadwell reportedly included threatening messages like “I know what you did,” “back off” and “stay away from my guy.”
Gen Petraeus’ wife Holly, left, is pictured with Scott and Jill Kelley at their home in Tampa, Florida
A source has told reporters that the emails from Broadwell may have been sent from Petraeus’ personal Gmail account, potentially suggesting a significant national security breach.
According to Buzzfeed, Kelley is married to Dr. Scott Kelley, an oncologist in the Tampa Bay area and the father of their three children. Kelley and her husband regularly host parties and charity functions in Tampa.
Kelley’s twin sister, Natalie Khawam, is a lawyer who graduated from the Georgetown University Law Center and a self-proclaimed “whistleblower.”
Khawam is one of six women who filed a sexual harassment lawsuit against her former employer, Barry Cohen, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Kelley is pictured below, along with her husband and Holly Petraeus.
