Three Secret Service officials have been put on administrative leave pending investigation
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- Three Secret Service officials in non-law-enforcement roles have been placed on administrative leave as the Office of Professional Responsibility probes unspecified misconduct, deepening questions about internal discipline and security culture.
- The suspensions come as the Secret Service faces mounting scrutiny after at least three assassination attempts on President Trump, including an armed breach at the Washington Hilton during the White House Correspondents’ dinner.
- Recent revelations about security concerns on Air Force One, Trump’s covert departure from Turkey amid reported assassination threats, and a leak probe involving Vice President JD Vance’s detail further underscore the agency’s turmoil.
Three U.S. Secret Service officials were put on administrative leave Tuesday, pending the outcome of an investigation by the agency’s professional standards office.
The three were operating in non-law-enforcement capacities and were being investigated for potential misconduct, the agency’s public information office reported. However, the cause for the action remained unclear as the Office of Professional Responsibility was beginning its review.
The Secret Service has been under scrutiny as President Trump has been the subject of at least three assassination attempts in the last two years. In April, police said an armed man breached security at the Washington Hilton during the White House Correspondents’ Assn. dinner, which Trump was attending.
The Secret Service has also found itself in the spotlight after other recent incidents.
The Justice Department last month subpoenaed New York Times journalists after they reported on security concerns involving the new Air Force One donated by Qatar. The subpoenas, which were later withdrawn, came after The Times reported that Trump was urged to leave Turkey on the old Air Force One at the urging of the Secret Service.
Then, Trump earlier this month acknowledged that he had actually slipped away from Air Force One as he departed Turkey because the Secret Service and military wanted him on a “different plane” due to concerns that he was being targeted for assassination by Iran.
Trump only confirmed he slipped away after The Washington Post reported that he had taken part in the elaborate ruse in which some of his staff, Secret Service and journalists flew on the old model Air Force One while he was snuck onto an alternate military aircraft to get out of Turkey.
Last month, the Secret Service also confirmed that one of its agents serving on Vice President JD Vance’s security detail was being investigated over allegations tied to a suspected news leak. The Secret Service said the investigation was tied to a July MS NOW report detailing some of its agents’ frustration over last-minute travel requests from Vance and his family.
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