(USNewsBreak.com) – Public officials in high positions often find themselves a target, which is why they have a security detail. However, this measure isn’t always a failsafe, and sometimes people slip through the cracks. That’s precisely what happened to National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan in late April.
A report by The Washington Post detailed how three government officials familiar with the incident claimed that a man made it through Sullivan’s US Secret Service (USSS) security detail and entered the house without detection. The national security adviser confronted the intruder around 3 a.m. and ordered him to leave the home, which the man did. He then briefed the Secret Service agents stationed outside his residence on what had just transpired. Alarmingly, until then, they were clueless.
Secret Service investigating intruder at National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan's home https://t.co/jWwjE0v6b7
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Unnamed sources who were briefed on the intrusion said the intruder was intoxicated and confused when he entered the residence and left before the agents could question him. They also confirmed that were no signs of forced entry at the house.
Secret Service spokesman Anthony Guglielmi issued a statement after the breach, saying that while Sullivan “was unharmed,” the agency is “taking this matter seriously.” To that effect, the agency opened a “comprehensive mission assurance investigation.” They will be looking into how the man got by the detail undetected. If investigators determine that agents disregarded protocols, Guglielmi said the USSS would hold the responsible person(s) accountable.
The report indicates the intruder meant the national security advisor no harm. However, in the meantime, the USSS replaced his detail and deployed additional security measures for both Sullivan and his home.
National security advisers didn’t always have around-the-clock Secret Service protection. It was a measure customarily reserved for when they traveled outside the DC area. It’s a relatively new protocol enacted after the FBI uncovered an assassination plot against John Bolton in 2021.
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