SHOCK: Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens' Felony Charge Could Result in FOUR YEARS in Prison

Source: Cole County Sheriff’s Office

Missouri Gov. Eric Greitens' felony charge in an alleged blackmailing scheme will likely doom the ambitious Republican's future and could send him to prison for four years.

Greitens is accused of blackmailing an unnamed woman by binding her, blindfolding her, and taking a photograph of her nude after the two engaged in an extramarital affair. He faces one felony invasion of privacy charge leveled by a federal grand jury.

The unnamed woman’s ex-husband provided secretly-recorded audio to CNN affiliate KMOV, where the woman states:

"I met Eric a year ago and I instantly had a big crush on him... He said: 'I'll make you feel better. I'll make you feel good. Come downstairs. I want to show you how to do a proper pull-up.' And I knew he was being sexual and I still let him.

And he used some sort of tape, I don't what it was, and taped my hands to these rings and then put a blindfold on me.” "I didn't even know. I feel like I don't even know. I was just numb. I just stood there and didn't [expletive deleted] know...

He stepped back, I saw a flash through the blindfold and he said: 'You're never going to mention my name, otherwise there will be pictures of [you] everywhere.'"

The ex-husband’s attorney stated he has provided “hours” of more audio to local authorities and the FBI, according to KMOV.

Greitens, the second-youngest governor in the Union, had already visited Iowa, according to the New York Times:

Mr. Greitens appeared in Iowa, on the campaign trail in the Virginia governor’s race and at a Republican conference on Mackinac Island in Michigan that is a traditional proving ground for White House hopefuls. 

At home, Mr. Greitens gleefully clashed with legislators and the statehouse press corps, making a show of his willingness to take on the establishment and boasting about his approach in interviews with conservative news media outlets.   In addition to accepting out-of-state speaking invitations, he aggressively sought to position himself in the national party by cultivating relationships with influential Republican figures. The former George W. Bush adviser Karl Rove, for example, got a call on his cellphone out of the blue last year from Mr. Greitens asking how he could help the party, according to a Republican briefed on the call. 

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Mr. Greitens has also come under fire for his extensive reliance on “dark money” political groups that are not required to disclose their contributors. 

The scandal has simmered since January when news of Greitens’ extramarital affair came to light. Greitens and his wife issued a statement about the affair.

If convicted on the felony charge, Greitens will be forbidden from owning any guns unless the firearm in question is an antique or he receives a pardon.