Amy Sultan – senior reporter deputy news editor at Us Weekly and new-ish wife to Scott Cosman (pictured here), operator of the tabloid's "in-house" paparazzi agency Flynet – has left the magazine, we're hearing.

She departed sometime this week, or as it's heretofore to be known, Post-Lawsuit.

Sultan, as you'll recall, was at the center of controversy over allegations that Us Weekly-lawsuit-filer Jill Ishkanian was hacking into Us Weekly's email and computer systems, since it was Sultan's username and password that were regularly abused, granting access to an untold number interested outsiders and celebrities.

And just so your dot-connecting comes full circle, Ishkanian-target and Us online chief Ken Baker was a guest at Sultan's wedding to Cosmon. And it was Cosmon's Flynet who snapped the pics of Teri Hatcher and Ryan Seacrest kissing — an allegedly staged setup orchestrated by Seacrest and BFF Ken Baker.

Now, what's that sound we're hearing? Oh, right: chips falling.

Exclusive

News broke in May that Us Weekly was working with the FBI to investigate a rash of hacking into its computer system. The suspect? Former staffer and current paparazzi agency head Jill Ishkanian, who was accused of stealing information about Charlie Sheen. Last month it was revealed Us' systems weren't so secure: not only could Ishkanian access the tabloid's email, but so could the very celebrities the mag writes about, thanks to rank abuse of staffer Amy Sultan username and password. But aside from being able to scoop Us at its own game – which, to be fair, is a pretty big deal – thus far the scurry to close the leak hasn't had a big item on which to pin Janice Min's fear. Thanks to the wide open net our inbox casts, we've got at least one rumor on which we can lay our suspicions.

I know exactly what Us Weekly is now terrified will eventually come out in the investigation. Do you remember the Ryan Seacrest/Teri Hatcher in Malibu kissing pictures taken on March 25, 2006, that ran EXCLUSIVELY in Us Weekly? No surprise to savy media watchers, but it seems the pix were a set up, (without poor Hatcher's knowledge) between Us' West Coast Editor Ken Baker and his longtime BFF Ryan Seacrest. There is serious concern that there are now copies of those incriminating e-mails now floating around cyberspace that prove the two were involved in setting up the Desperate Housewives star. With ABC owning half of Us Weekly, how will it look to the bigwigs there to have Hatcher, their biggest star, made an object of ridicule, or a temporary beard for the American Idol host?

Ken Baker involved in under-the-radar spin? Psshaw!

Related: Former Us Staffer Especially Didn't Steal Info on Charlie Sheen
Related: FBI to Stop Us Weekly From Handing Out Passwords to Former Employees