Obama Rode Elevator With Armed Man With Criminal Record, Sources Say
Incident is one in series that have raised questions about Secret Service.
— -- President Obama rode an elevator with an armed security contractor who had a criminal record during a recent visit to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, according to a source with knowledge of the situation.
The man was flagged because he was taking pictures and acting somewhat unprofessional in the elevator with the president during the Sept. 16 visit, the source said.
At that point, the Secret Service ran a check on the man and found that he had a criminal record, the source said.
While the president was apparently in no danger, the situation marks the latest in a series of incidents that have raised criticism about the functioning of the Secret Service, and comes the same day as a Congressional hearing into how a man pierced layers of Secret Service Security at the White House.
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In that startling security lapse earlier this month, 42-year-old Omar Gonzalez, armed with a 3 ½-inch serrated knife, scaled the north fence at the White House, stormed through the unlocked North Portico door, and barreled past an agent into the East Room minutes after the First Family had departed the White House. Gonzalez was indicted on federal and local charges Tuesday.
One day after the Sept. 19 incident, an unauthorized vehicle was cleared into the White House compound.
Additionally, in 2011 a man fired several rounds at the White House while some of the president's relatives were inside.