Ex-CIA Director Petraeus sentenced, fined for mishandling 'classified materials'

David Petraeus, a former CIA director and retired US four-star general, has been sentenced to two years of probation and fined for leaking classified material to his mistress.

The former CIA director resigned from his post in 2012, after it was discovered that he was having an affair with his biographer, Paula Broadwell. He reached a plea bargain with prosecutors after admitting to leaking sensitive documents to Broadwell while she was working on a book about him, reported the BBC.

Prosecutors said that Petraeus had given her eight binders of classified material to Broadwell in 2011, which he had improperly retained from the time he was leading the war in Afghanistan.

He could have faced a year in prison after his guilty plea two months ago. However, the court has decided to put him on probation and ordered him to pay a 100,000 dollar fine.

While appearing in court before the sentencing, Petraeus apologised for his actions.

When he left, he thanked those who had supported him and said, "I look forward to moving on to the next phase in my life."

Petraeus was in charge of America's recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and was once considered a contender for the Republican presidential ticket.