Ex-Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell files for divorce after 42 years of marriage

Former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell speaks during a news conference in Richmond, Va., accompanied by his wife, Maureen (2014). (AP)

Former Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell - the once-rising Republican star who became tangled up in a corruption scheme with his wife Maureen – has filed for divorce after 42 years of marriage.

McDonnell filed for the split with the Virginia Beach Circuit Court in late November. His soon-to-be ex-wife was served with divorce papers five days later, The Virginian-Pilot reported.

“I hope you respect the privacy of our family,” he told the Pilot on Monday. “We have been through a lot for the last four or five years.”

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The GOP governor, who served from 2010 to 2014, was widely seen as a rising star before being hit with multiple corruption charges.

McDonnell was found guilty in 2014 of accepting more than $165,000 in gifts and loans from businessman Jonnie Williams in exchange for promoting a dietary supplement.

He was initially sentenced to two years in prison but his conviction was overturned in June 2016 by the U.S. Supreme Court which unanimously voted to narrow the scope of a law that bans public officials from accepting gifts in exchange for “official action.”

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One year after McDonnell was sentenced, Maureen McDonnell was sentenced to 366 days in prison.

During the trial, testimony seemed to show cracks in the couple’s marriage.

The former governor testified he was gone a lot during the early years of his marriage. He said he was living with his priest, was unwilling to go home at night and said his wife’s angry outbursts overwhelmed the marriage.

He also claimed it was his wife who accepted the gifts from Williams.

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McDonnell is Virginia’s first governor to be indicted on federal corruption charges.

The McDonnells have been married for 42 years. They have five adult children and live in Virginia Beach.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.