“We were outside. Matt kissed me. We went inside and had sex,” Sinema recalled of their first romantic encounter
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NEED TO KNOW
- Former Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema detailed her months-long affair with her former bodyguard, Matthew Ammel, in a July 31 deposition
- Sinema claimed that their affair started in May 2024 when Matthew kissed her outside of their Airbnb in Napa, Calif.
- Matthew’s ex-wife, Heather Ammel, sued Sinema in January under North Carolina’s alienation of affection law, arguing that Sinema “willfully and intentionally” seduced her husband of 14 years
Former Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema is detailing her affair with her former bodyguard, Matthew Ammel.
Five months after she admitted to having an affair with Matthew in a motion filed to dismiss a lawsuit filed by Matthew’s ex-wife, Heather Ammel, Sinema testified during a July 31 deposition that she had sexual relations with him multiple times, according to federal court filings obtained by PEOPLE.
Heather sued Sinema in January under North Carolina’s alienation of affection law, arguing that Sinema “willfully and intentionally” seduced her husband of 14 years. She seeks more than $75,000 in damages.
While Sinema did not deny having an affair with Matthew, she argued that she should not be sued under North Carolina’s “homewrecker” law, as the affair did not happen in the southern state.
In the deposition, Sinema recalled first having sex with Matthew in 2024 while they were staying at an Airbnb around Memorial Day.
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“We were staying at an Airbnb in Napa, Calif.,” she said, per the transcript. “We were outside. Matt kissed me. We went inside and had sex.”
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Sinema then claimed that the affair continued a month later in New York City while Sinema was there to attend the wedding of CNN anchor Jessica Dean. While Sinema stated that she and Matthew had separate hotel rooms throughout the trip, she said they were “intimate” in her room.
In the following months, Sinema recalled having sex with Matthew again in mid-July at her Washington, D.C., apartment, during a trip to Aspen, Colo., in mid-August and at her house in Phoenix that October, according to court documents. She also acknowledged that she was aware that Matthew was married and had three children throughout their affair.
During the deposition, a lawyer asked Sinema about a series of text messages that she sent to Matthew, which included a photo of herself in a towel with cupping marks on her body.
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While she claimed that she did not recall sending the message, the politician suggested that the conversation must have been “about sports,” emphasizing that she is an endurance athlete.
A separate message sent to Matthew in October 2024 read, “Putting my hand on my heart. I’ll see you soon. I miss you,” per the deposition.
When asked if she understood why “a wife reading this might get concerned about who is sending her husband that kind of message,” Sinema responded with a simple, “Yes.”
For her part, Heather said in a deposition that her husband is an “established liar and manipulator,” per court documents. In a text message she sent to her then-husband in June 2024, Heather also described Sinema as an “insidious” woman who is “willing to break up a family.”
Following these depositions, there will be an evidentiary hearing on Aug. 19.
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