Petraeus reaches plea deal with Justice Dept.

WASHINGTON — Former CIA director David Petraeus reached a plea agreement with the Justice Department, concluding a years-long investigation that shows he gave his mistress secret information, including names of covert officers and war strategy, according to court documents.

Petraeus, a retired four-star general, lied to FBI agents, divulged a massive amount of sensitive data to Paula Broadwell, his mistress and biographer, and fretted about how she handled them in an interview she recorded with him.

The plea deal, which carried a recommended two years of probation and a $40,000 fine, brings an end to an arc in which Petraeus rose to become the nation's most famous general from the Iraq War, then was reduced to a fallen idol driven from office because of a high-profile extramarital affair.

The documents show Petraeus kept eight black books containing classified and unclassified notes he took during meetings, conferences and briefings during his tenure as a military commander. In late August 2011, he delivered the books to a private Washington residence where Broadwell — his biographer and mistress — stayed during a week-long trip to the area.

"The D.C. private residence was not approved for the storage of classified information,'' the documents state.

Among the mass of sensitive information in the books were the "identities of covert officers, war strategy, intelligence capabilities and mechanisms, diplomatic discussions … and deliberative discussions from high-level National Security Council meetings, and discussions with the president of the United States.''

Also contained in the "black books'' was national defense information, including on secret code words.

In a conversation recorded by Broadwell, she asked Petraeus about the whereabouts of the black books, and he acknowledged their sensitivity.

"By the way, where are your black books?'' Broadwell asked Petraeus, according to a transcript of a conversation Aug. 4, 2011. "Um, well, they're really — I mean they are highly classified, some of them."

Later that month, Petraeus sent Broadwell an e-mail in which he "agreed to provide the black books to his biographer'' and left the binders there from Aug. 28 to Sept. 1.

Information filed in federal court in North Carolina says these lapses were part of a pattern from August 2011 to April 5, 2013, in which Petraeus did "unlawfully and knowingly'' remove classified materials and retain them at "unauthorized'' locations. Petraeus agreed to plead guilty to one criminal count of mishandling classified information.

The plea agreement includes a recommendation of two years' probation and a $40,000 fine.

Petraeus declined to comment. An attorney for Petraeus, Robert Barnett, also declined to comment on the plea deal.

When FBI agents asked Petraeus about his handling of classified information during an interview Oct. 26, 2012, at his CIA office, Petraeus lied, the documents show. He said he "had never provided any classified information to his biographer, and he had never facilitated the provision of classified information to his biographer.''

"Defendant David Howell Petraeus then and there knew that he previously shared the black books with his biographer,'' the court documents say.

After acknowledging the affair and resigning from the CIA in November 2012, Petraeus signed an agency "security exit form,'' in which he assured authorities there was "no classified material in my possession, custody or control at this time.''

When he said that, the black books were still at his home, the documents say.

Petraeus was the most lauded general in the post-9/11 era, having devised a counterinsurgency strategy that tamped down violence in Iraq but did not result in conditions he deemed necessary to build an inclusive government. U.S. troops withdrew in 2011, but 3,000 have returned to advise Iraqi forces battling Islamic State extremists.

Petraeus went on to lead Central Command, which oversees military operations stretching from the Middle East to Afghanistan. President Obama chose him to command forces in Afghanistan when Gen. Stanley McChrystal was fired in 2010 after his staff was quoted in Rolling Stone magazine making disparaging remarks about politicians, including Vice President Biden.

In Afghanistan, Broadwell, an Army intelligence officer, met and traveled with Petraeus several times for research on her book, All In: The Education of David Petraeus. They maintain that their affair began after Petraeus left the military. In 2011, Obama named Petraeus to lead the CIA.

Petraeus, who holds a doctorate from Princeton, has been advising a venture capital firm in New York.

He retains supporters in Washington, including Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., the chairman of the Armed Services Committee.

"With the Department of Justice investigation now complete, Gen. Petraeus has pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor," McCain said in a statement. "He has apologized and expressed deep regret for this situation, and I believe it is time to consider this matter closed. At a time of grave security challenges around the world, I hope that Gen. Petraeus will continue to provide his outstanding service and leadership to our nation, as he has throughout his distinguished career."