Ex-Sen. Kyrsten Sinema sued over alleged affair with former bodyguard
Heather Ammel sued ex-Sen. Kyrsten Sinema for $75,000, alleging an affair with her husband, alienation of affection tied to messages, trips, treatment and employment roles.
Overview
Plaintiff Heather Ammel alleges former Sen. Kyrsten Sinema pursued her husband, Matthew Ammel, a retired Army veteran who joined Sinema’s security detail in 2022, leading to marital breakdown.
The complaint seeks at least $75,000, alleging romantic Signal messages, gifts, solo trips, paid psychedelic treatment, and a paid Senate fellowship that continued through 2024.
The suit was filed late last year in Moore County, North Carolina, then moved to federal court in January; alleged travel included Napa Valley, Las Vegas, Saudi Arabia and Nashville.
Evidence cited includes Signal message excerpts, alleged advice to bring MDMA on trips, paid treatment, cohabitation claims, and testimony about reduced marital intimacy and removed wedding ring.
North Carolina allows alienation-of-affection claims; AP News reports Sinema, who left the Senate in 2024 and now works at Hogan Lovells, hasn't responded.
Analysis
Center-leaning sources frame the Sinema lawsuit as a factual, legally grounded allegation while subtly emphasizing controversy around her personal and professional conduct. By foregrounding lawsuit claims, quoting charged phrases ('romantic and lascivious'), noting her non-response and highlighting career moves (party departure, lobbying, psychedelic ties), sources create a reputation-focused narrative.
Sources (10)
FAQ
Alienation of affection allows a spouse to sue a third party for wrongful conduct that intentionally disrupts or diminishes the marital relationship, without needing to prove physical infidelity.
The lawsuit alleges Sinema sent romantic Signal messages, gave gifts like a Theragun, took solo trips to Napa Valley, Las Vegas, Saudi Arabia, and Nashville, paid for psychedelic treatment, and employed Matthew Ammel as a Senate fellow, leading to marital breakdown.
Filed in Moore County Superior Court in September 2024, moved to U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina on January 13, 2026 (case 1:2026cv00038); Sinema has not responded.
Matthew Ammel is a retired Army veteran and former member of Sinema’s security detail starting in 2022, later becoming her paid Senate national security fellow in June 2024.
No, Sinema, now working at Hogan Lovells after leaving the Senate in 2024, has not responded to the allegations.
History
3 sources