The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation will look into Nashville Mayor Megan Barry’s extramarital affair with the head of her security detail. This morning the city’s top prosecutor, District Attorney Glenn Funk, asked the state agency to find out whether any laws were broken by the illicit relationship, including misappropriation of public funds and official misconduct.
A spokesperson for the prosecutor’s office said they would not elaborate at this time on what type of actions, specifically, would warrant criminal charges.
TBI spokesperson Josh DeVine confirmed the agency’s involvement Thursday afternoon, adding that “TBI agents are investigating whether Nashville Mayor Megan Barry and/or others, including retired Metro Police Sgt. Rob Forrest, violated any criminal law.”
As customary, DeVine says agents will conduct interviews and collect evidence, which will then be turned in to the district attorney’s office, where Funk will make the final determination of whether any law has been broken.
A spokesperson for Metro Police said that Chief Anderson welcomes the TBI’s investigation, though there are no plans for the department to investigate Forrest at this time.
Barry admitted to the affair at a press conference outside her office Wednesday night after rumors had been circulating all day. Standing in front of a gaggle of journalists, staffers and several council members, Barry apologized for her actions but assured Nashvillians that her conduct was not outside the law.
“I’ve had an affair with Sgt. Forrest over the last couple of years, but every trip that we took was business-related,” she said. “Absolutely, there were no policies that were violated. Nothing illegal happened. The records will absolutely show that the expenses matched with the overtime expected, but I welcome anybody to take a look at that.”
Records show that Barry traveled alone with Forrest nine times last year, including trips to New York, San Francisco and Greece. The Mayor was scheduled to attend conferences and participate in events during these trips.
This story has been updated with Metro Nashville Police Department’s response.
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