DEVELOPING ...

Cartagena, COLOMBIA - The scandal regarding as many a 12 Sercret Service agents being sent home because one allegedly tried to bring a prostitute into his hotel room, which resulted in a confrontation, has now widened to include five U.S. service members.

Military officials said Saturday the service members violated curfew and "may have been involved in inappropriate conduct ...alleged to have occurred in the same hotel where the recalled U.S. Secret Service agents were staying."

The service members were assigned to Joint Task Force Summit of the Americas in support of the Secret Service.

General Douglas Fraser, commander of USSOUTHCOM, said he is "disappointed by the entire incident and that this behavior is not in keeping with the professional standards expected of members of the United States military."

White House spokesman said the president is aware that service members now appears to be involved.

The U.S. Secret Service said on Saturday it had put 11 agents on administrative leave to investigate their behavior, and apologized for the distraction the incident had caused.

A dispute in a hotel about paying for an extra "guest," possibly a prostitute, started the confrontation that ultimately led to sending home at least a dozen Secret Service agents covering detail of President Obama's trip in Colombia, a senior law enforcement official tells Fox News' Ed Henry.

New details are emerging about the incident at the Hotel Caribe, where the Secret Service advance team was staying ahead of Obama's three-day visit to the country.

A senior law enforcement official said the dispute started when hotel employees witnessed inappropriate behavior.

An employee approached at least one Secret Service agent and demanding that he pay extra money for having an additional overnight guest in his room.

The agent balked, which eventually resulted in a confrontation and forced diplomatic intervention.

The official said the guest involved apparently was a prostitute. It remains unclear whether more agents and more prostitutes were involved.

A hotel employee told the Associated Press the agents were drinking heavily during their stay.

The senior law enforcement official stressed the matter is under investigation and officials are still trying to corroborate initial details.

The hotel tells Fox News they will not be commenting on the matter.

A new Secret Service crew was immediately rushed to Colombia to cover the agents who had been sent home.

What makes the case unusual is the large number involved. In previous incidents involving agents on a trip, typically only one or two personnel have been involved.

As is protocol with any White House foreign trip, there's a large contingency of federal agents covering multiple aspects of presidential security. Agents often arrive several days ahead of the president.

The embarrassing incident has quickly eclipsed issues addressed at the summit such as foreign trade, the economy; drug trafficking, immigration and collaboration among the 33 Western Hemisphere countries.

The beachfront hotel where the apparent incident occurred is also the same where other White House staff and the press are staying.

A Service Service spokesman said the alleged incident occurred prior to the president's arrival. The agency would not confirm the total number of people involved or whether the incident had to do with prostitution. Officials stressed that the president's security was never in any danger.

The White House has not yet commented and is directing all inquiries to the agency.

Prostitution is legal in Colombia in certain "tolerance zones"

"The Secret Service takes all allegations of misconduct seriously," agency spokesman Edwin Donovan said Friday. "This entire matter has been turned over to our Office of Professional Responsibility, which serves as the agency's internal affairs component."

Capitol Hill lawmakers have been briefed on the situation. Sources tell Fox News Senior Producer Chad Pergram that those involved were not on the president's detail.

There are different divisions of security positions within the Secret Service, including a uniformed division and one that provides presidential protection.

Former Washington Post reporter and author on a book about the agency, Ronald Kessler, first reported the allegations.

http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2012/04/14/hotel-dispute-started-confrontation-sent-home-secret-service-agents-misconduct-involving-?test=latestnews

Idiot's. They are there for a VERY important job and step in it so deep they need diplomats to come in and straighten it out. They need to be fired and I don't care what the Secret Service says, were not idiots, this could have endangered our President. Morons.

I wonder if they are some of the same who let 'party crashers' into a presidential function previously,,,,,?

I dunno, but protecting the President and Vice-President is not a joke and they really need to straighten their $hit out because they have gotten lucky nothing has happened during these big messups.

I think the incident with the party crashers was more the White House staff's fault and not the Secret Service.

Considering the shenanigans that went on with the explosions near by they are reeeeally lucky nothing happened.

I don't care if you like or hate him, security for the President needs to be on their game 24/7 from the moment the advance team arrives until the time the President lifts off on Air Force One.

Security for the President needs to be on top of their game from the moment the advance team arrives until the point that Air Force One lifts off the ground, otherwise something really bad can happen.

Did ya like that so much you had to post it twice? lol

Yeah, like they were with JFK in Dallas! And Bobby....

Reports of heavy partying by the Secret Service in Dallas the night before JFK was assassinated are still making the rounds!

Rep. Darrell Issa said Sunday that he believes the potential misconduct is not a first.

"Things like this don't happen once if they didn't happen before," Issa, R-Calif., chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said on CBS' "Face the Nation."

He said his staff will participate in what he described as an "over-the-shoulder investigation" to find out how the incident happened and "how often has this happened before."

"This kind of a breach is a breach in the federal workforce's most elite protective unit," he said.

Issa said he was not satisfied by claims that Obama was never in danger, considering the questions the incident raises.

"What happens if somebody six months ago, six years ago, became the victim of their own misconduct and is now being blackmailed?" he said. "The question is, is the whole organization in need of some soul-searching, some changes."

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/04/15/congress-to-probe-secret-service-prostitution-scandal/#ixzz1sAXeWrNQ

Rep. Issa said it best today................

Bobby didn't have Secret Service protection, it was that incident that started the ball rolling for candidates to get Secret Service protection.

There was more to it then that. I don't think anyoneone's hands are clean in the JFK assassination including Vice President Johnson.

It was (probably) sanctioned by THE COMPANY.

with this pres, they can not be as gamey....

Huh?

some were definitely glad it played out this way,especially one Carlos Marcello of New Orleans and Dallas!

i doubt it with Johnson but Now Marcello different story.

well,he coined a lovely Phrase!
"If you want to stop the Dog from wagging it's Tail,cut off his Head"!
Referring to RFK as the tail!

http://www.newsy.com/videos/jfk-s-assassination-47-years-later/

“It is believed Mafia bosses find in the coup plan a way to stop their real enemy. Not Fidel Castro, but the U.S. Attorney General. Carlos Marcello very colorfully explained if you have a dog, and you cut off its tail, meaning Bobby Kennedy, the head of the dog will turn around and bite you. But if you cut off the head of the dog, the tail will quit wagging on its own. The Mafia developed their plan to kill JFK, and their first attempt was not in Dallas but it was actually planned for Chicago.”

They were all tied together, the mob, the government and the military. They ALL hated Kennedy and ALL had something to gain from him getting clipped.