The Secret Service has apologized to Alicia Powers, owner of Four One Three Salon in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, after she reported that some individuals broke into her business to use the bathroom while they were securing a nearby fundraiser for Vice President Kamala Harris.
Powers claimed that on July 27, a group including people in emergency medical uniforms, camouflage law-enforcement gear, and dark suits entered her salon after someone picked the lock. She also reported that a Secret Service officer had covered a security camera outside her salon with tape. This action was captured on surveillance footage.
A Secret Service spokesperson, Melissa McKenzie, stated that agents would never break into buildings without permission. However, she confirmed that the camera tape incident did occur. “Our personnel would not enter, or instruct our partners to enter, a business without the owner’s permission,” McKenzie said.
According to Business Insider, Powers received an apology from the head of the Secret Service’s Boston field office. Powers said, “He said everything that was done was done very wrong. They were not supposed to tape my camera without permission or enter the building without permission.”
The salon, located behind the Colonial Theatre where Harris’ event was held, was closed before the fundraiser due to the security activities. Powers said the salon was chaotic, with numerous security personnel conducting bomb sweeps. “My team felt like it was a little bit chaotic, and we just made the decision to close for Saturday,” she explained.
Powers also described how a female Secret Service agent covered her Ring security camera with duct tape that morning. She reported that several people used her salon’s bathroom and counter without asking for permission and left the building unlocked.
“If they had asked, I would have been happy to help,” Powers said. “But they didn’t even have the audacity to ask for permission. They just helped themselves.”
Adding to the controversy, this incident occurred shortly after Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt at a Pennsylvania rally. The Secret Service faced criticism for failing to secure the building’s roof, leading to the resignation of Director Kimberly Cheatle.
