The incident reportedly happened last week while the agents were drunk after a party. An investigation is ongoing.
The White House is seen through two layers of fence in Washington Sept. 23, 2014.
Carolyn Kaster / AP
A Secret Service spokesperson confirmed to BuzzFeed News Wednesday that the agency is “aware of the allegations of misconduct involving two of our employees at the White House Complex” on March 4. An investigation into the incident is ongoing.
The Washington Post first reported the story and identified the agents as Mark Connolly and George Ogilvie. Connolly is the second in command of President Obama's security detail. Ogilvie is a senior supervisor in the Washington, D.C., field office.
According to the Post, the incident happened after the two agents attended a retirement party for Secret Service spokesperson Ed Donovan at a Washington, D.C., bar. The men then drove to the White House, where witnesses saw their overhead lights activated. Witnesses also said the men used their security badges to get into a closed section of the grounds.
The vehicle then drove through security tape and crashed into a barricade that had been set up for an investigation of a suspicious package.
After the crash, officers at the scene wanted to arrest the men, as well as give them sobriety tests, according to the Post. However, a supervisor reportedly ordered the officers to release the agents.
A Secret Service spokesperson told BuzzFeed News in an email that “if misconduct is identified, appropriate action will be taken based on established rules and regulations.”
On Sept. 16, 2014, Obama rode in an elevator with an armed security guard in violation of Secret Service policy. Later that same month, a man managed to scale the White House gates and make it inside the presidential residence before Secret Service agents stopped him.
Then, in October, the agency's director, Julia Pierson, resigned. A report issued late last year also mentioned “systemic problems” and called for reform at the Secret Service.
LINK: Secret Service Report Urges Higher White House Fence, Stronger Leadership
Secret Service Agents Allegedly Crashed Into White House Barricade After Drinking
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