Gatecrashers met Obama, Singh; Secret Service apologises

I / Washington November 28, 2009, 12:59 IST

American couple Michaele and Tareq Salahi, who gatecrashed into a State Dinner on Tuesday, came face to face with US President Barack Obama as well as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the event, in the White House.

A White House picture posted on several US websites showed the reality TV stars being greeted by Obama at a reception line with Manmohan Singh standing alongside. A White House official said the couple, who attended the State Dinner without an invitation, did meet the President in the receiving line, but the gatecrashing has led to security alarm buttons being pressed.

The President has ordered a full review of the incident. An internal Secret Service investigation is already underway as the socialite couple breached several layers of security to mingle with the international who's who at the White House lawns.

"The Secret Service is deeply concerned and embarrassed by the circumstances surrounding the State Dinner," Mark Sullivan, director of the Secret Service said in a statement. Sporting a tuxedo and a flowing lehenga, the Salahis posted their entry into the mega event on Facebook, with photographs taken with Vice President Joe Biden and White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel.

"Although these individuals went through magnetometers and other levels of screening, they should have been prohibited from entering the event entirely," Sullivan said admitting, "that failing is ours."

Now the Secret Service say they made a mistake and are taking actions to identify exactly what happened and they will take the appropriate measures pending the results of their investigation, White House spokesman Nick Shapiro said. Meanwhile, amidst media reports, the Indian Embassy in an statement said it had not requested any invitation for Michaele and Tareq Salahi.

The couple were known for their proximity to the Indian mission and were instrumental in the US-India Polo match scheduled for next summer at the prestigious National Mall. Neither the embassy nor anyone from the embassy was involved in any way in their getting into the White House. Nor did we request any invitation for them," the Indian Embassy said in a statement.