Two Secret Service members will be sent home from South Korea after an alcohol-fueled incident ended with the local police involved and both members being placed on administrative leave, a new report says.
An agent and an armed physical security specialist, who had been sent to the country ahead of President Joe Biden’s visit, went out to several bars after dinner, and one of them got into a tense argument with a cab driver, sources told ABC News. South Korean police responded to the “altercation,” a report was filed, and the two were ordered back to the United States, the report added.
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“The Secret Service is aware of an off-duty incident involving two employees which may constitute potential policy violations. The individuals will be immediately returned back to their post of duty and placed on administrative leave. There was no impact to the upcoming trip,” said Anthony Guglielmi, an agency spokesman, in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “Given this is an active administrative personnel matter, we are not in a position to comment further.”
One of the agents was interviewed by local authorities, and no charges have been filed, the spokesman added.
Biden touched down in South Korea on Friday to mark the beginning of a five-day Asia tour to discuss the two nations’ economic commitments.
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Earlier this year, four Secret Service members were placed on administrative leave after allegedly accepting gifts, such as a rent-free apartment, from two men accused of impersonating federal law enforcement to get close to members of the U.S. government. Over a dozen members of the Secret Service were also investigated back in 2012 for allegedly hiring prostitutes while preparing for then-President Barack Obama’s arrival in Colombia.
