A longtime friend of Lauren Sanchez has told how the married TV anchor set her sights on Jeff Bezos after she and her husband became friends with the billionaire in Seattle.
After meeting the Amazon CEO and his wife MacKenzie socially several years ago, Sanchez, 49, told a friend, ‘Now that’s the kind of guy I need,’ a close friend claims to DailyMail.com, convinced she was referring to Bezos’s wealth.
Sanchez, who was revealed to be romantically involved with the billionaire shortly after he announced he was divorcing his wife of 25 years on Wednesday, has a penchant for ‘living large,’ the insider said.
In fact, during a shopping trip with girl friends to high-end department stores Neiman Marcus and Barney’s in Beverly Hills, Sanchez took home a $12,000 designer shoe haul.
Lifestyle: Jeff Bezos’s lover Lauren Sanchez, has a penchant for ‘living large,’ a close friend has told DailyMail.com
The married TV anchor reportedly set her sights on Jeff Bezos after she and husband Patrick Whitesell (far left) became friends with the billionaire while living in Seattle. Over the last several years, both couples have been photographed at glitzy events
This is the Seattle home Sanchez owns with her husband Patrick Whitesell. The pair used to socialize with the Bezoses while they were both living in the city
The Bezoses own two homes in Medina, an exclusive Seattle suburb. They paid $10million for the 5.3-acre property in 1998
When one of the women asked her what her talent agent husband Patrick Whitesell, 53, would say, Sanchez supposedly replied: ‘Let’s find out.’
The friend, who wished to remain anonymous, told DailyMail.com: ‘She called him and asked: “Is it okay if I buy all these shoes?”‘ He told her yes.’
Sanchez then confided: ‘I have him wrapped – I can have anything I want.’
According to the friend Sanchez is ‘very sweet but she was always a climber.’
Sanchez’s impressive shoe and clothes collection was even documented in an interview with Us Weekly in 2011, during which she gave a tour of her massive closet.
While working as a reporter for news magazine Extra in 2010, she offered another glimpse into her designer wardrobe during a ‘Ultimate Denim Guide’ segment.
Sanchez is a third-generation Mexican-American who was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico where she had a modest upbringing.
In 2017 interview with the Hollywood Reporter, Sanchez revealed she ‘came from nothing’ and ‘used to sleep in the back of my grandmother’s car when she would go clean houses.’
Her career in news and entertainment kicked off when she moved to California for college and later landed gigs as a television host in Los Angeles appearing on shows such as Extra, Showbiz Tonight, Fox 11 and Good Day LA.
While working as a reporter for news magazine Extra in 2010, she offered glimpse into her designer wardrobe during a ‘Ultimate Denim Guide’ segment
Sanchez’s impressive shoe collection can be seen in the background
She also shot a segment behind the scenes of her bikini shoot where she was seen picking out swimsuits
Pictured is Lauren Sanchez’s house in Beverly Hills. During a shopping trip with girl friends to high-end department stores Neiman Marcus and Barney’s in Beverly Hills, Sanchez allegedly took home a $12,000 designer shoe haul
She began angling to take over a full-time job at the local news station after a shakeup that led to the departures of longtime hosts Dorothy Lucey and Jillian Reynolds.
‘She really wanted that gig but she was never going to get it. She tried to be a sexy anchor but she lacked taste,’ the friend dished.
‘Her bosses at Fox told her to tone it down.’
Aside from her on-screen jobs, Sanchez has a passion for flying and launched her own film aerial production, Black Ops Aviation, in 2016.
Friends believe things between Bezos and Sanchez heated up after he hired her to do aerial shots for Amazon.
Over the last several years, both couples have been photographed at glitzy events including the Vanity Fair Oscars party.
Despite her affair, the friend told DailyMail.com that Sanchez and Whitesell remain friends and were even spotted chatting at Amazon’s Golden Globes after party on Sunday night.
News of Bezos’s and Sanchez’s relationship would break just days later, along with reports of an eight-month affair involving steamy texts, nude photo exchanges, private jet rendezvous, intimate dinners and sleepovers at each other’s marital homes.
A friend described Sanchez as ‘very sweet but she was always a climber.’ She allegedly bragged about her relationship with Bezos, the world’s richest man, which led to the revelation of their affair
Sanchez and Whitesell are seen with actor Casey Affleck at the 2017 Vanity Fair Oscar Party. Affleck won for Manchester By The Sea – which was made by Amazon
But those stories came to light after Sanchez allegedly bragged to friends about her secret lover and sent them the explicit text messages and selfies he had sent her.
According to Page Six, Sanchez sent a friend a photograph of Bezos’s genitalia which he had sent her along with other messages which included him telling her he loved her and that he wanted to ‘breathe her in’.
The friend slipped the messages to The National Enquirer and that it was triggered its exhaustive, four month investigation into the pair’s romance, according to the source.
One source who claimed to have seen the photograph of Bezos’ genitalia that he sent Sanchez told Page Six: ‘He’s big.’
Sanchez, a third-generation Mexican American, was born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico
They have both denied cheating on their spouses since details of their romance emerged on Wednesday evening.
Sanchez and Hollywood mega agent Whitesell tied the knot in 2005 at a star-studded wedding in Santa Barbara that was packed with many of Whitesell’s biggest clients.
‘Matt and Ben don’t get to see each other often, so we sat them together,’ Sanchez told People at the time, referring to Matt Damon and Ben Affleck.
Also on the guest list was Jennifer Garner, Jessica Alba, and Hugh Jackman.
The pair did a ‘sexy rumba’ for their first dance, choreographed by So You Think You Can Dance’s Mary Murphy, and shared a passionate kiss at the altar.
‘The kiss was long. You could tell they’re in love,’ wedding planner Marianne Weiman-Nelson recalled.
It seemed like a dream come true for Sanchez, who had previously been engaged to NYPD Blue actor Henry Simmons and shares son Nico, now 17, with ex-boyfriend Tony Gonzalez, a former tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs.
After giving birth to Evan, now 12, and Ella, 10, Sanchez returned to Extra as a weekend anchor and special correspondent and began co-hosting Good Day La from 2011 to 2017.
She also made a number of appearances on the big screen, portraying a news anchor for movies including White House Down, Ted 2, and We Bought A Zoo.
Sanchez’s sisters Elena Sanchez (left) and LeAnn Sanchez (right) were seen days after news of the affair broke
Sanchez is seen with Pauly D and her co-host Steve Edwards on Good Day LA in April 2012
Aside from her on-screen jobs, Sanchez has a passion for flying and launched her own film aerial production, Black Ops Aviation, in 2016
But even as her hosting career flourished, Sanchez was finding out she was happiest behind the camera – and above the ground.
Sanchez served as a consultant for Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk, and most recently worked as an aerial producer for the upcoming Miss Bala starring Gina Rodriguez.
Sanchez’s company was hired to shoot an aerial video for Bezos’s side venture Blue Origin.
It was previously reported that the pair have been dating since June, months before Sanchez separated from Whitesell in the fall and nine months before Bezos announced he was splitting with Mackenzie.
According to the Enquirer, the pair met several times for illicit trysts as often as six times in two weeks.
He reportedly took her on vacations on his $65million private jet and sent her erotic selfies that were ‘too explicit’ even for the magazine to print.
A source close to Bezos told DailyMail.com that the Amazon founder only began seeing Sanchez after separating from his wife – however the National Enquirer claims the affair went on behind their spouses’ backs.
Sanchez and Whitesell tied the knot in 2005 and have two children (pictured left). She previously dated Tony Gonzalez (right) a former tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs
Bezos released a statement announcing their divorce on his Twitter account last week in a bid to present the news in a favorable light.
He and his wife described each other as ‘cherished friends’ and gave the impression their break-up was amicable.
‘If we had known we would separate after 25 years, we would do it all again,’ they said in a joint statement.
Jeff and MacKenzie Bezos are seen together at the 2017 Vanity Fair Oscaes party. A source close to the couple tells DailyMail.com that they had separated before he began seeing Sanchez