FBI Knew of Petraeus Affair Months Ago

Officials defend failure to notify other agencies
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 12, 2012 3:15 AM CST
Updated Nov 12, 2012 7:57 AM CST
FBI Knew About Petraeus Affair Months Ago
Gen. David Petraeus, left, shakes hands with biographer Paula Broadwell in this July 2011 photo.   (AP Photo/ISAF)

High-ranking officials at the FBI and Justice Department were aware by late summer that investigators had found evidence of the extramarital affair that led to the resignation of Gen. David Petraeus, the New York Times reports. But the law enforcement officials didn't let anybody outside the FBI and Justice know about the general's affair with biographer Paula Broadwell until last week because the investigation wasn't complete, and there didn't appear to be any proof of security breaches, officials say.

Lawmakers say they should have been informed much sooner and are demanding a probe into the investigation, but the FBI is defending its handling of the case, the Washington Post reports. Other tidbits that are trickling out on this Monday morning:

  • A source close to the Petraeus family fleshes out the timeline a bit more: The affair began last year, about two months into Petraeus' run as CIA director; it ended four months ago. Petraeus' former spokesman tells Reuters, "My understanding is that they mutually determined that it was time to end it."
  • The other woman to become a headline name in the brouhaha, Jill Kelley, said in a statement last night that she and her family has been friends with the Petraeuses for more than five years.
  • What was in the emails Broadwell reportedly sent Kelley? Sources tell the New York Post they included phrases like "back off," "stay away from my guy," and "I know what you did."
  • The timing of the revelation wasn't so hot for Broadwell: The Wall Street Journal reports that her 40th birthday bash, set for last Saturday in DC, was canceled.
  • Ouch: In addition to being valedictorian and homecoming queen, Broadwell was voted "Most Likely to Be Remembered" by her high school class.
  • Weird factoid: It turns out Broadwell lives less than two miles away from John Edwards' mistress, Rielle Hunter, in Charlotte's Dilworth neighborhood, reports the Daily Beast.
  • To clear up a question many have been asking: Unlike in the military, adultery is not a crime in the CIA. But because it could lead to blackmail, it can be a "security issue."
(More David Petraeus stories.)

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