Kathy Allen, wife of General John Allen, the top military commander under investigation for sending “flirty” emails to Jill Kelley, was reportedly unhappy about their close friendship.
Kathy Allen complained to the wife of the civil liaison officer at Central Command in Tampa about the number of emails her husband was receiving from Jill Kelley.
Officials probing the links between General John Allen, 58, and Jill Kelley, 37, said there are 20,000 – 30,000 pages being examined.
One official said the content of the emails were so explicit they amounted to “phone sex”.
John Allen, who is the commander of coalition forces in Afghanistan and due to take up a position as head of NATO, has denied any wrongdoing.
Mark Rosenthal, a civil liaison officer, said Jill Kelley was “loud, ostentatious and revealing” at the parties where she kissed and hugged high-ranking military officials. Mark Rosenthal said Jill Kelley wore revealing short skirts at the parties.
Kathy Allen, wife of General John Allen, was reportedly unhappy about his close friendship with Jill Kelley
Other sources said Jill Kelley never spoke with anyone below the rank of colonel and focused on those officers with the most power.
Mark Rosenthal was aware the Tampa socialite was bombarding General John Allen with thousands of emails. He said Kathy Allen complained to his wife about the emails and he contacted Jill Kelley to ask her to stop.
Since becoming a key player in the military sex scandal, Jill Kelley has had access denied to the MacDill Air Force base.
Jill Kelley was among a handful of civilians who had easy access to the base in her role as an unpaid liaison officer and “honorary consul”.
General John Allen and his wife Kathy were pictured laughing as they rip open Christmas presents and serious-faced as they support each other at official events.
But this solidarity now threatens to crumble, after John Allen was found to have sent thousands of “inappropriate” emails to military socialite Jill Kelley, launching an FBI and Pentagon investigation.
The general, who leads U.S. troops in Afghanistan, allegedly exchanged tens of thousands of messages with Jill Kelley, the Florida housewife who sparked the probe into the David Petraeus affair.
But intimate photo albums give a glimpse into John Allen’s happy family life, while his daughter’s blog reveals how their support and love of music helped her realize her dream of becoming a singer.
John Allen, who grew up in Oakton, Virginia and has enjoyed a glittering military career spanning nearly four decades, has a wife, Kathy, and two daughters, Bobbie and Betty.
In photographs from the family Christmas, Kathy Allen, who calls herself “PudgeMom” on social networking sites, laughs as she opens presents and chats with her family.
In photographs from the family Christmas, Kathy Allen, who calls herself PudgeMom on social networking sites, laughs as she opens presents and chats with her family
Bobbie Allen, 27, has revealed how her military upbringing shaped her, and has told how she was inspired to sing by her mother, who would always sing in the house.
Now living in Washington DC, Bobbie Allen revealed that music helped her during a transient childhood.
She called Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville, North Carolina, home twice while growing up – and even performed there last year.
According to Bobbie, her mother Kathy Allen carried their stereo system by hand to every new duty station they moved to and it was the first thing they set up in their new homes, saying: “That’s when life could begin.
“If we’d had a bad day at school, she would put on happy music and make us dance. Music was the fifth member of our family.”
Writing on her blog, Bobbie Allen said she was inspired by Karen Carpenter, calling her voice “liberating and inspiring”.
Bobbie Allen said she always kept her tape deck playing, and sang to herself in the backseat of the car as the family moved around.
General John Allen, who is now under investigation by the FBI for allegedly exchanging thousands of “inappropriate” emails with military socialite Jill Kelley, simply called her “sweetheart”, a top official has claimed today.
In a dramatic new twist in the David Petraeus sex scandal, General John Allen reportedly exchanged 20,000 to 30,000 emails with Jill Kelley, the woman who sparked the probe into the CIA boss.
Jill Kelley, a housewife and unpaid social liaison for the military in Tampa, tipped off the FBI about threatening emails from David Petraeus’ mistress, Paula Broadwell, exposing the affair and leading to his resignation.
These latest revelations mean General John Allen, who is married with two adult daughters, is the second top military official to be dragged into the David Petraeus scandal.
John Allen, who is under FBI investigation for exchanging thousands of inappropriate emails with Jill Kelley, simply called her sweetheart
John Allen, 58, succeeded David Petraeus in Afghanistan and was due to take over as NATO’s top commander – but his appointment has been suspended while his relationship with Kelley is investigated.
A top official told the Washington Post that John Allen simply used the word “sweetheart” – which he said proves nothing as the general is from Virginia, where it is used as a platonic phrase.
“He’s never been alone with her,” the official said.
“Did he have an affair? No.”
The senior official added that Kathy Allen, the general’s wife, and Jill Kelley were “good friends”.
General John R. Allen is the second top military official dragged into the David Petraeus sex scandal after being accused of sending thousands of “inappropriate” emails to socialite Jill Kelley, the woman responsible for exposing the former CIA director’s extra-marital affair.
General John R. Allen, commander of U.S. and NATO troops in Afghanistan, is under investigation by the FBI after the agency discovered between 20,000 and 30,000 pages of communication between him and 37-year-old housewife Jill Kelley.
Jill Kelley entered the public eye when she was the target of threatening emails from Paula Broadwell, which the FBI used to uncover the affair between Broadwell and david Petraeus, leading to the former general’s resignation from the CIA.
John Allen, 58, who is married with two daughters, succeeded David Petraeus in Afghanistan and was due to take over as NATO’s top commander – his appointment has been suspended while his relationship with Jill Kelley is investigated.
John Allen, who graduated from the Naval Academy in 1976, was Deputy Commander of Central Command, based in Tampa, prior to taking over in Afghanistan. He also is a veteran of the Iraq war.
He lives in Washington D.C. with his wife, Kathy, with whom he has two daughters, Bobbie and Betty. Betty is a teacher, while Bobbie, a 27-year-old graduate of Virginia Tech, is a singer and released her debut album last year.
John Allen, who is married with two daughters, succeeded David Petraeus in Afghanistan and was due to take over as NATO’s top commander
After growing up in Oakton, Virginia, John Allen graduated with military honors from the Naval Academy with the class of 1976. He is a 1998 distinguished graduate of the National War College.
John Allen holds a master of arts degree in national security studies from Georgetown University, a master of science degree in strategic intelligence from the Defense Intelligence College, and a master of science degree in national security strategy from the National War College.
General John R. Allen assumed his duties as the Commander, International Security Assistance Force – Afghanistan and United States Forces – Afghanistan on July 18, 2011.
John Allen played a key role in countering the Iraq insurgency between 2006 and 2008. He then oversaw a surge in US troops in Afghanistan in battling the Taliban.
In Afghanistan, General John R. Allen commanded coalition troops from 50 different countries.
He was nominated in October by President Barack Obama to be Supreme Allied Commander Europe and commander of the U.S. European Command – that is now on hold.
But if John Allen is found to have engaged in an extramarital affair – a crime in the military – he faces being court martialed, bringing a spectacular fall from grace and the end to a glittering army career that has spanned nearly 40 years.
President Barack Obama had nominated John Allen to take over as chief of the military’s European Command and NATO’s Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, but that nomination is now on hold as the Pentagon investigates Allen’s relationship with Kelley, Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told reporters.
John Allen had been expected to take that new post in early 2013 if confirmed by the Senate, as had been widely expected.
The FBI notified the Pentagon of its investigation into John Allen’s communications with Jill Kelley on Sunday evening, an unnamed senior defence official said.
Leon Panetta said he immediately notified the White House and top leaders in Congress of the investigation.
Leon Panetta said John Allen would remain as commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan for now, “while the matter is under investigation and before the facts are determined”.
Pentagon officials have declined to comment on the nature of the relationship between Jill Kelley and John Allen except to say that it was “potentially inappropriate”.
Officials have not said whether any national security secrets were breached.
