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3 Secret Service agents benched before Obama trip

WASHINGTON — The Secret Service sent three agents home from the Netherlands just before President Obama’s arrival after one agent was found inebriated in an Amsterdam hotel, the Secret Service said Tuesday.

The agents were benched for ‘‘disciplinary reasons,’’ said Secret Service spokesman Ed Donovan, declining to elaborate. Donovan said the incident was prior to Obama’s arrival Monday in the country and did not compromise the president’s security in any way.

Still, the incident represents a fresh blemish for an agency struggling to rehabilitate its reputation following a prostitution scandal and other allegations of misconduct.

The agents were placed on administrative leave, according to The Washington Post. The Post said all three were on the Counter Assault Team, which defends the president if he comes under attack.

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One agent was discovered highly intoxicated by staff at a hotel, who reported it to the US Embassy, said a person familiar with the situation, who wasn’t authorized to discuss the matter. The other agents were deemed complicit because they didn’t intervene .

Associated Press