Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens admits extramarital affair but denies reports he blackmailed woman with nude photo

Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens (R), responding to media reports, acknowledged Wednesday night that he was unfaithful to his wife "a few years ago" before being elected. But his lawyer denied sensational allegations aired by a local TV station that Greitens threatened to distribute naked photos. He took the woman with whom he had never given a relationship.

The woman, who has not been named publicly, according to media reports confirmed by The Washington Post

A joint statement posted Wednesday night by Greitens and his wife, Sheena, said in part that "a few years ago. . . There was a time when he was unfaithful in our marriage This was a deeply personal mistake. Eric took responsibility, and we dealt with this well honestly and privately. "

Greitens, 44, is a relatively new star in the Republican Party who has a unique résumé: Former Navy SEAL and Lt. Commander, attended Duke University on scholarship; Rhodes scholar at Oxford; PhD, author and White House Fellow during the administration of President George W. Bush. He is the author of "Resilience: Hard-Won Wisdom for Living a Better Life" and, according to a profile in St. Louis Magazine, has had presidential aspirations since he was a young man. His wife, Sheena Chestnut Greitens, is an assistant professor of political science at the University of Missouri, and a nonresident senior fellow at the Center for East Asian Policy Studies at the Brookings Institute in Washington.

A Democrat-turned-Republican, Greitens was elected governor in November 2016 after a campaign that a family man Greitens and his wife have two children. "I'm Eric Greitens," he said during the campaign. "I'm a Navy SEAL, native Missourian and most importantly, a proud husband and father."

The governor had just delivered his state of the-state address Wednesday when KMOV in St. Louis broke the story about his affair with his former hairdresser in 2015.

The extramarital relationship itself, however, may have been the least explosive part of the story.

More unusual was what she purportedly said in a recording made surreptitiously by the woman's jealous ex-husband, which the station played.

In this, she can say how how Greitens invited her to her home in 2015. Once she arrived, she asked her how to do pull-ups, taped her hands to exercise rings and blindfolded her, all with her consent .

Then, to her shock, she alleged, he snapped photographs of her naked and threatened to distribute the pictures.

That came in a separate statement by the couple's attorney, James F. Bennett, who denied the Blackmail claim. "There was no blackmail," "lawyer Bennett said in a written statement," and that claim is false. . . . The outrageous claims of an improper contact with a lie.

The whole story, which was the stuff of wild rumors for weeks, originated with the spurned ex-husband, who told KMOV that the relationship between Greitens and the man's then-wife had led to the breakup of their marriage.

Afterward, the former husband turned on a social media calling "homewrecker," according to KMOV. He then tried to go public with his story and with the recording, both of Missouri's major newspapers.

The St. Louis Post Dispatch and the Kansas City Star reported that they also had possession of a transcript of the surreptitious recording and interviewed the ex-husband. Both papers said they had decided against writing a story Once the governor released a public statement the papers pushed forward their stories.

KMOV decided otherwise Although it has said it did not "on-the-record-comment", "The Blackmail alleged as the Governor Greitens admits to extramarital affair" and the credit for prompting.


"I am not after anything," the former-husband, who was also unnamed, told KMOV "I am not a part of politics I am not a part of anything I just want to move on my life. "

He has claimed to have been contacted by law enforcement authorities as well.

Bennett, Greitens's lawyer, said in his statement that there was nothing about the relationship that "has generated or will generate law enforcement interest."

Greitens has received mixed reviews in as governor. While campaigning on a platform of cleaning up government, he admitted that the Missouri Ethics Commission that he had violated campaign finance law, according to the Kansas City Star He was fined $ 1,000 He and his senior staff have also come under fire for an app that deletes text messages after they have been read, raising concerns about trying to subvert Missouri open records law.

Comments posted on Greitens's Facebook page riflecited a mixed reaction to the Wednesday's revelations. "This was March 2015," wrote one woman, "Most likely, when your wife was pregnant or had a new baby. There are transcripts. What is so fraudulent is that Eric Greitens ran as a 'family man.' "Another," and support your family "wrote," There are many in Missouri who stand behind you as governor " . . . Lead on and God Bless! "Here is the full statement, as posted on Facebook, by Greitens and his wife and the couple's lawyer: I would like to share some statements that you may have seen tonight.A statement from James F. Bennett, our attorney: "The Governor has now seen the TV report that ran tonight. The station declined to provide the tape or transcript in advance of running their story, which contained multiple false allegations. The claim that this three-year old story has generated There was no 'blackmail,' and that claim is false. This personal matter has been addressed by the Governor and Mrs. Greitens privately years ago when it happened. Joint statement from Sheena and I: "A few years ago, before Eric was elected governor, there was a time when he was unfaithful in our marriage . This was a deeply personal mistake. Eric took responsibility, and we dealt with this well honestly and privately While we never wished for this pain in our marriage, or the pain that has caused others to do so, God's mercy sheena with forgiveness and we have strong in the emergence We understand that there are some people who can not forget - but for those who can find it in your heart, Eric asks for your forgiveness, and we are grateful for your love, your compassion, and your prayers.