Counter terrorism official suspended for taking $40,000 from 'sugar daddy'

A counterterrorism official at the Department of Homeland Security has been suspended as an investigation has been launched into claims that she was in a "sugar daddy" relationship and took tens of thousands of dollars from a man she was involved with.

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Counterterrorism Julia Varvaro, 29, was placed on leave on Wednesday, per the New York Post. This came after an ex-boyfriend filed a complaint with the DHS, claiming that her behavior posed a "security risk." DHS said in a statement, "Julia Varvaro is on administrative leave as a result of the investigation and she is no longer serving in her capacity as a Deputy Assistant Secretary at DHS."

The ex that filed the complaint was identified only as Robert B, and is reportedly a decades-older divorced business executive. He wrote in the complaint, "I did not want a sugar daddy/prostitute relationship, after spending $30,000-$40,000 in vacations, Cartier jewelry, expensive handbags, and various shopping trips." The complaint was first reported by the Daily Mail. 

He added in the complaint, "She also told me directly that the $40,000 worth of jewelry on her wrists and ears are all trophies from her sugar daddies. I believe that she’s under financial stress and that her actions pose a security risk."

Their three-month relationship reportedly began in December after they met through the dating app Hinge, with Robert B discovering that she also had a profile on the website Seeking, which markets itself as "a space where love and luxury meet." He said that her Seeking profile was under the name "Alessia," and she sought "mutually beneficial" relationships with "masculine men."

He said he took her on luxurious vacations, including to Italy, Switzerland, and Aruba, and took her to fine dining restaurants and on luxury shopping sprees. In regards to the Aruba trip, he claimed that Varvaro guilted him into switching to a more expensive resort, going into the prior hotel’s Cartier store for a "souvenir" before leaving. "She was like, 'This is nice, but it’s not the Ritz," he said. The upgraded resort came in at $1,700 more per night than the original hotel booked. On a European trip, he said she pressured him into buying a $3,500 Bottega Venetta handbag, a $1,000 camera, and new ski gear. 

He said he finally resisted when she asked for him to give her a credit card to pay her rent amid the DHS shutdown. She allegedly told him, "I’m not used to having to ask like this for a simple card or help with my rent especially with being furloughed. Any past relationship would’ve jumped up and cared for me, which is what I like."

He said, "I was like: 'You know that’s not happening because I see how you like to shop.' That got me the cold shoulder."

Varvaro has dismissed the claims, saying that it was an ex-boyfriend making up things about her. "This is just a mad ex-boyfriend putting crap together. And it’s just really weird. I thought it was a great relationship until we just didn’t work, and that was it."

She added, "If we made a story about every failed short relationship in DC, this town would implode."