WASHINGTON — A Secret Service agent in Vice President Kamala Harris' security detail has been placed on administrative leave following allegations of a groping incident with a Harris staffer in Wisconsin, according to two law enforcement officials.
The officials confirmed to NBC News that the agent was part of an advance team in Green Bay and was intoxicated when the alleged incident took place. The agent has been removed from Harris’ detail.
The assault was flagged to the local Secret Service field office, and the agent’s gun and badge were confiscated, one of the officials told NBC News.
The Secret Service had recently notified Harris’ office about an incident involving one of its agents and a “misconduct allegation,” according to spokespeople for both the Secret Service and the vice president's office.
In a statement about the incident, Harris' office said that it takes the “safety of staff seriously” and that it has “zero tolerance for sexual misconduct.”
The Secret Service has placed the person on administrative leave pending an inquiry, according to the Secret Service spokesperson.
“The U.S. Secret Service Office of Professional Responsibility is investigating a misconduct allegation involving an employee," an agency spokesperson said. "The Secret Service holds its personnel to the highest standards.”
Harris' office said in a statement that it was recently alerted about the incident.
“The Office of the Vice President take the safety of staff seriously. We have zero tolerance for sexual misconduct," the statement said. "Senior OVP officials were alerted by the USSS about an incident involving an agent and informed that USSS initiated an investigation. The Office of the Vice President will not be releasing further information.”
RealClearPolitics reported earlier Wednesday that a Secret Service agent was accused of sexually assaulting a Harris staffer in Green Bay. According to the site, which attributed the information to four unnamed sources, the incident occurred within the last week while the staff was doing advance security assessments for a possible Harris campaign event that ultimately did not take place.
According to the report, the alleged assault was witnessed by other people and happened in a hotel room after staff members had been to dinner. The agent is alleged to have forced himself on a female staffer, groping her in the process.
NBC News has not been able to independently verify the report.
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., who chairs the Homeland Security subcommittee investigating the attempt to assassinate former President Donald Trump, criticized the agency Wednesday, saying it "has been plagued by scandal."
"The performance of agents abroad, the most recent assassination attempts and the latest report of personal compromise all point to the need for a drastic, far-reaching, fundamental reform that changes the leadership of this agency,” Blumenthal told reporters. “There has to be new blood coming from the outside that gives the hard-working, skilled Secret Service agents the leadership they need and deserve.”
