Has the FBI Begun Investigating Nuzzi-RFK-Lizza Triangle?

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Just how did the sexting affair between Robert F, Kennedy Jr and reporter Olivia Nuzzi come to light? New York Magazine suspended their star political journalist two weeks ago, after Nuzzi reversed course with her editors after previously denying an inappropriate relationship with the subject of her reporting at the time. The shockwave included the ending of Nuzzi’s engagement to another political-journalism star, Ryan Lizza.

The last we heard, RFK had hired an investigator to work on a lawsuit against Nuzzi, whom he claims was harassing him with pornographic images. Gavin de Becker may have to wait in line, however, as new reports suggest that the FBI has opened a criminal investigation into — wait for it — potential violations of revenge-porn laws:

The FBI is probing whether anyone involved in the Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Olivia Nuzzi love triangle broke the law by distributing the so-called “demure” nude photos of the star political reporter in an act of revenge porn.

RadarOnline.com has learned agents at the bureau’s Washington D.C. headquarters have been given a “cache of evidence” from Nuzzi, who last week filed a complaint with the nation’s top law enforcement agency.

While the investigation began into hacking allegations – Nuzzi claimed her ex, Politico writer Ryan Lizza, mounted a harassment and blackmail campaign against her – it has quietly widened into whether anyone revealed sexually explicit images or videos of the glamorous 31-year-old, a source confirmed.

Whodunit? First, the question is whether anyone did it. Granted, this case hasn’t been at the top of the news cycle in a week filled with Iran’s attack on Israel, Hurricane Helene, the VP debate, and polls polls polls. Somehow, though, one has to imagine that the release of any such photos to the public would have gotten at least a little attention. 

At any rate, there’s not much mystery about the suspect. Nuzzi filed a complaint in a DC court alleging that Lizza tried to extort her cooperation on a book deal and retaliated by releasing “illegally obtained information” regarding her private life. Nuzzi alleged in the filings that Lizza “doctored” some of that information as well:

In a complaint filed in Superior Court of the District of Columbia, Ms. Nuzzi accused the former fiancé, Ryan Lizza, a top political reporter at Politico, of hacking her devices and stealing a device to surveil her and collect materials to pressure her back into a relationship with him.

She accused Mr. Lizza of bringing “damaging information” to the attention of her employer and of distributing materials to the media that she said she believed to be doctored.

She also claimed in the complaint that Mr. Lizza had threatened her with violence to coerce her into assuming his financial responsibility in a joint book contract, and “explicitly threatened to make public personal information about me to destroy my life, career and reputation — a threat he has since carried out.”

Worth noting: filings are not evidence, nor are protective orders a conclusion by the court. Lizza denied having done anything wrong. However, Politico announced Tuesday night that Lizza will now also be on a “leave of absence” as this all plays out:

On Tuesday night, a Politico spokesman said Politico and Mr. Lizza had “mutually agreed that it is in everyone’s best interest for him to step back and take a leave of absence” while an internal investigation is conducted.

So what is the FBI doing in this mess? They’re not saying, the Daily Beast reported yesterday, but that’s SOP. Nuzzi seems to believe that they are actively pursuing this as a crime:

Those claims, Nuzzi told The New York Times on Tuesday, were elevated to the FBI last week. The FBI declined to comment, saying it doesn’t comment on public complaints, though it typically limits its investigations to federal crimes—including hacking.

“I will not comment on an active criminal investigation,” Nuzzi said in a statement to the Daily Beast Wednesday.

Perhaps they are. The FBI would have jurisdiction in DC, presumably, even though revenge porn in the district is a misdemeanor. However, if the information got accessed by hacking, it becomes a felony charge, not to mention the federal charges that hacking itself brings. On the other hand, the FBI may well decide that this is really a civil rather than criminal manner, in which case they … still won’t say anything, more than likely. 

Basically, this is a mess that appears to get worse as time passes. Having made a federal case about it in the literal sense, Nuzzi has ensured that this story will endure for quite a while. Stay tuned just in case any shoes drop at the Department of Justice.