Petraeus’ lover had hundreds of secret files
FBI found massive amount of classified records on computer
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — FBI agents found hundreds of classified documents on Paula Broadwell’s home computers in Charlotte during their investigation into her relationship with then-CIA Director David Petraeus, according to newly unsealed FBI documents obtained by the Charlotte Observer.
More than 300 of those documents were classified as secret, according to a 2013 FBI affidavit accompanying the agency’s request to search Petraeus’ Arlington, Va., home. Broadwell never charged
The documents, which were unsealed Tuesday by the U.S. District Court in Eastern Virginia, offer new details of the sweeping federal investigation into the relationship between Broadwell, a Charlotte author, and Petraeus, a highly decorated military commander, the subject of Broadwell’s book as well as her former lover.
The probe uncovered their affair, revealed their mishandling of classified documents and lead to Petraeus’ resignation as head of the CIA. Last year, Petraeus pleaded guilty in Charlotte to a misdemeanor charge of mishanling government documents and was fined $100,000.
Broadwell, the author of Petraeus’ biography, was never charged. Legal experts say her role as a journalist made any prosecution problematic.
Broadwell did not respond Wednesday morning to a phone message and email seeking comment. Neither did her Washington-based attorney, Robert Muse. Jacob Sussman, the Charlotte member of Petraeus’ defense team during his plea hearing, also could not be reached.
The documents, partially redacted, have been sealed for more than three years. At the time of the search warrant request, the FBI asked that the affidavit remain sealed to protect an ongoing investigation. It was released in response to a public information request by the media.
The affidavit is signed by a Charlotte-based FBI agent.
The documents show that when confronted by the FBI, both Broadwell and Petraeus appeared to mislead investigators about their extensive exchange of classified material, most of it involving military and diplomatic operations during Petraeus’ years as commander of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Petraeus admitted his affair with Broadwell during an October 2012 interview with the FBI in his CIA office. But he said he never gave classified information to her. That answer led some prosecutors to recommend that Petraeus be hit with a felony charge of obstructing a federal investigation. As part of his plea deal with Charlotte-based prosecutors, Petraeus admitted he lied to the FBI. Discussed secrets
Interviewed in Charlotte, Broadwell claimed to have gotten some of the documents doing research for her book but “was unable to provide specifics as to how she obtained them. … Broadwell advised that she never received classified information from Petraeus,” the affidavit says.
On the contrary, the new documents include details of multiple emails between the two over classified records, including the “black book” diaries and logs Petraeus kept as commander.
The FBI also gathered recordings Petraeus made as military commander in the Middle East in which he discussed information classified as “Top Secret” with reporters.
In an audio file taken from Broadwell’s home in November 2012, Petraeus can be heard discussing “sensitive military campaigns and operations” with reporters from The Washington Post. His only demand was to be referred to in the subsequent stories “as a senior military officer,” the affidavit says.