The New York Times Has Supposedly ID'd the Shirtless FBI Agent in the Petraeus Scandal -- Here's the Lowdown

The New York Times has supposedly ID’d the FBI agent accused of sending shirtless photos to Tampa socialite Jill Kelley, the woman ultimately responsible for outing former CIA director David Petraeus' mistress Paula Broadwell.

His name is Fredrick W. Humphries II, he’s 47-years-old, and he's more famously known for the role he played in investigating the Millennium Bomber.

Here’s a photo of him from a 2000 Seattle Times article:

Courtesy the Seattle Times

And in regards to the infamous shirtless photos: Humphries’ lawyer says it isn’t what you think it is. The photos were sent as part of a joke that involved the agent posing next to dummies. Furthermore, they were sent years before the Broadwell trouble began.

"It was sent as part of a larger context of what I would call social relations in which the families would exchange numerous photos of each other," said Lawrence Berger of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association.

Yes, according to Berger, the Humphries knew the Kelleys long before the Petraeus affair.

In fact, Humphries and his wife had been “social friends with Ms. Kelley and her husband prior to the day she referred the matter to him,” according to Berger.

“They always socialized and corresponded,” he added.

That would explain why Kelley reached out to him for help. He was a family friend. Also, now that we supposedly have the context in which she received those shirtless photos, it doesn't seem that weird.

But what else does the Times article have to say about Humphries?

“Two former law enforcement colleagues said Mr. Humphries was a solid agent with experience in counterterrorism, conservative political views and a reputation for aggressiveness,” the Times report notes.

"Conservative political views" you say?

“Fred is a passionate kind of guy,” said one former colleague. “He’s kind of an obsessive type. If he locked his teeth onto something, he’d be a bulldog.”

Could it be that this scandal was uncovered not by a slightly obsessed and seemingly random FBI agent, but by a dedicated bulldog with a certain -- ahem -- "political worldview" that drove him to stick with what he must have believed to be a major case involving national security?

Courtesy the Seattle Times

Final Thought: You know, the traditional media has done a really fantastic job of hunting down all the characters involved in this sex-circus.

It seems that after weeks, months, and years of neglecting the “Fast and Furious” gunrunning scandal, outlets including the Washington Post and the New York Times have suddenly rediscovered investigative journalism.

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(H/T: BuzzFeed)