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The woman at the root of the four-star scandal that led to the downfall of Petraeus and threatens the career of Gen. John Allen lives an extravagant lifestyle that conceals mountains of money owed to banks and credit card companies, court documents show
She drives a luxury Mercedes and always dresses to kill — but Jill Kelley is actually drowning in debt.
The woman at the root of the four-star scandal that led to the downfall of David Petraeus and threatens the career of Gen. John Allen lives an extravagant lifestyle that conceals mountains of money owed to banks and credit card companies, court documents show.
The house remains in the foreclosure process, with the most recent motion filed on Oct. 12.
Kelley, who is an unpaid social liaison to the men and women in uniform coming and going from MacDill Air Force Base mere miles away from her home, never showed signs of stress.
“ She turns heads,” an anonymous friend of the Kelleys told the Daily Mail.
“At the parties she would flirt with all the senior military guys. She’s touchy-feely. Her hands would be on their arms. She was attentive. It’s not hard to see why she had some guys under her spell.”
Yet the party was at risk of coming to an end for at least two years.
A second property owned by the Kelleys in downtown Tampa was also in foreclosure proceedings beginning in 2010.
In that case, Central Bank claimed the couple owed $2.2 million, according to the Tampa Bay Times. The case was resolved, though details were not available.
And in 2010, Chase Bank sued the Kelleys over failure to pay a $25,088.56 debt on a revolving credit account. The case was voluntarily dismissed by the bank a year later.
Regions Bank sued the Kelleys for $253,437.31 in unpaid credit card bills, according to court documents.
In February the couple agreed to pay $850 a month, with $8,500 down, until the balance is paid, records show.
All told, Jill or Scott Kelley have been the subject of at least nine lawsuits since they moved to Florida, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
But their troubles weren’t just restricted to the Sunshine State.
The Kelleys were sued in 2004 in Montgomery County, Pa., by a couple who said they refused to return a $10,000 deposit on a condo rental that fell through. The court issued a default judgment against the Kelleys, and court records show it was paid the following year.
Despite their debt, the couple remained firmly established as the de facto welcoming committee to top military brass at U.S. Central Command.
Photos from bashes at Chez Kelley show a jolly Petraeus wearing beads around his neck alongside the woman who would ultimately lead to his undoing. Holly Petraeus — who is now reportedly fuming over her spy husband’s not-so-secret affair — also is all smiles.
The swank soirees came complete with catered buffets, valet parking, primo cigars, Champagne and even string quartets, the Washington Post reported.
“Jill was such an awesome client,” one caterer told the Tampa Bay Times. “(She) did so much for the military, fabulous mother and amazing wife; can’t say enough nice things about her. She never spared anything for the military. It was all about them.”
Scott Kelley is reportedly a highly sought-after surgeon specializing in cancer of the esophagus .
But a tax filing from 2007 for the Doctor Kelley Cancer Foundation provides a hint at the cost of sparing no expense for the brass he and his wife so admired.
The nonprofit foundation lists only Jill and Scott, along with Jill’s twin sister Natalie Khawam as its trustees.
The foundation — dedicated to “efforts to discover ways to improve the quality of life of terminally ill adult cancer patients” had no employees, according to the documents.
Yet in a single year, the Kelley clan spent $43,317 in meals and entertainment connected to the foundation, according to tax filings. They spent $8,822 in travel expenses, and $3,740 in office-related expenses, though the nonprofit was based in their home.
The foundation did not file tax information past 2007.
But it’s clear the Kelleys’ connections had perks — though they couldn’t save Natalie from her own money troubles.
Both four-star generals caught in the scandal vouched for Natalie in letters supporting her in a custody battle over her son.
Not only did the judge in the case award Natalie’s ex-husband custody last year of their now 4-year-old son, John, but he also told Natalie to pay his legal bills amounting to $350,000.
She filed for bankruptcy in April after racking up more than $3 million in debt, according to federal court records. Court filings indicate that the debt included an $800,000 personal loan from Jill and Scott Kelley.
The status of Natalie’s most recent custody appeal was not known.
None of the lawyers listed in the reams of court documents returned phone calls.
The only information from the Kelley family came in a statement from their superstar crisis manager, Judy Smith, who pleaded for privacy.
Jill’s brother David Khawam, an attorney based in Mount Laurel, N.J., told the Burlington County Times he spoke with her Sunday.
“She was doing okay. I don’t know how she’s handling it now,” Khawam, 40, told the paper.
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