Jill Kelley loses her ‘honorary consul’ title

GlobalPost

The fall-out from the David Petraeus scandal continues with Jill Kelley, the Tampa socialite who helped expose the affair, to lose her title of "honorary consul," a South Korean official said. 

CNN reported  Deputy Foreign Minister Kim Kyou-hyun told South Korean reporters during a visit to Washington that the country would revoke the title because Kelley inappropriately used her title for personal gain.

"It's not suitable to the status of honorary consul that (she) sought to be involved in commercial projects and peddle influence," Kim told the Yonhap news agency.

More from GlobalPost: Jill Kelley: Who is she?

The latest development is a further blow to the glamorous socialite who enjoyed rubbing shoulders with top military brass. Earlier this month, she lost the privilege of visiting MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa without an escort.

It followed claims she had exchanged flirtatious emails with a top US commander, Gen. John Allen, and she used her title when she called police on November 11 to complain about the media coverage.

"I am an honorary consul general," Kelley told police on a recording of the phone call … I have inviolability. They should not be on my property. I don't know if you want to get diplomatic, uh, protection involved as well."

During the height of the scandal and following the resignation of CIA director David Petraeus, Kelley's efforts to broker business deals on behalf of South Korea were revealed.

ABC News said the mother-of-two also tried to establish a relationship between South Korea and the University of South Florida's medical school.

More from GlobalPost: Jill Kelley: The other woman in David Petraeus scandal

South Korean officials told CNN that "an honorary consul can generally play a role of promoting trade and economic cooperation between the two countries" but it does not carry diplomatic immunity. 

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