Biden security official arrested, accused of assaulting South Korean
SEOUL — One of President Biden’s security personnel was arrested after allegedly assaulting a South Korean citizen in Seoul a day before the presidential trip to the country, according to police on Friday.
The individual was detained early Thursday, said an official at Seoul’s Yongsan district police, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was unauthorized to speak about the incident. The official declined to comment further.
South Korea’s Chosun Ilbo newspaper, which first reported the case on Friday citing an unnamed source, said the suspect was drunk and got into a fight with a South Korean citizen over a taxi near the Grand Hyatt hotel in Seoul, where Biden’s team is staying. The suspect works for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and is in their 30s, according to the newspaper.
DHS oversees the Secret Service, whose agents in the past have been involved in scandals while being detailed overseas. The White House referred questions to the Secret Service, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Biden arrived Friday for his first visit to Asia of his presidency, kicking off a five-day tour aimed at underscoring his administration’s diplomatic and economic commitment to the region in the face of a rising China.