The Kamala Harris campaign office confirmed the incident and said it was aware of the claim.
A US Secret Service agent has been accused of sexually assaulting a staffer for Kamala Harris in a hotel room, according to a report from The Independent.
The alleged assault happened Friday night on an advance trip last week when the agent and several Harris staffers were dining and drinking alcohol at a restaurant in Wisconsin, the outlet says.
The group reportedly retreated to the staffer’s hotel room, where the unnamed Secret Service agent allegedly forced himself on her and groped her before others.
Those inside the room then reportedly kicked him out into the hallway, where he was said to have been so drunk that he passed out.
“The U.S. Secret Service Office of Professional Responsibility is investigating a misconduct allegation involving an employee,” the Secret Service said in a statement to The Independent.
The Secret Service holds its personnel to the highest standards. The employee has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of the investigation,” it added.
The Kamala Harris campaign office also confirmed the incident, stating that it was well aware of the allegations against it. “We have zero tolerance for sexual misconduct,” it told The Guardian.
“Senior OVP [Office of the Vice President] officials were alerted by the USSS about an incident involving an agent and informed that USSS initiated an investigation,” it added.
It has witnessed some scandalous behavior by the agents, such as in 2012 when agents were accused of bringing prostitutes to a hotel in Colombia and in 2014 when three agents, then-US President Barack Obama, also was sent home and suspended for excessive drinking during a trip to Amsterdam.
