Secret Service member returns to US following altercation in Israel

(CNN) — A member of the US Secret Service Counter Assault Team was detained by the Israeli national police in Jerusalem this week after he allegedly assaulted a woman outside of a bar, a source tells CNN, and the Secret Service says the agent is on his way back to the US.

It’s unclear how the incident started.

“Late Monday, the United States Secret Service was informed that an agency employee working in Israel was allegedly involved in a physical encounter. The employee was briefly detained and questioned by Israeli police, who released him without charges. The employee has returned to the United States,” the Secret Service said in a statement. “In accordance with agency protocol, his access to Secret Service systems and facilities was suspended pending further investigation.”

CNN has reached out to the White House for comment.

The incident follows a string of high-profile incidents involving the Secret Service. Earlier this year, two Secret Service employees were sent home from South Korea following an altercation with a cab driver and two Korean nationals just as President Joe Biden embarked on his first Asia tour since taking office.

In April, four Secret Service employees were put on leave after being accused in a federal investigation of being duped by two men claiming to be Department of Homeland Security agents.