Donald Trump fires US Secret Service chief

Donald Trump

Washington DC: Less than 24 hours after Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen resigned, President Donald Trump on Monday (local time) removed Secret Service Director Randolph 'Tex' Alles from his post.

Alles will be replaced by James M. Murray, a career member of the Secret Service. He is set to take over as the Secret Service Director next month.

"United States Secret Service director Randolph 'Tex' Alles has done a great job at the agency over the last two years, and the President is thankful for his over 40 years of service to the country," White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said in a statement.

"Mr. Alles will be leaving shortly and President Trump has selected James M. Murray, a career member of the (United States Secret Service), to take over as director beginning in May," she was quoted by The Hill as saying.

Alles' resignation was doing the rounds earlier in the day after CNN had reported that Trump was firing him. While serving in the position, Alles used to report directly to Nielsen, who tendered her resignation on Sunday, reportedly due to immigration issues with Trump.

Alles' resignation comes after the Secret Service came under scrutiny for its handling of an incident in which a Chinese woman named Yujing Zhang was arrested last month after she tried to enter the resort by allegedly resorting to lying to gain access inside the private club.

She reportedly made her way past a security checkpoint at the club and told security officials she was there to go to the swimming pool. The woman was charged for allegedly carrying a thumb drive with malicious malware, two Chinese passports, four cell phones, a laptop, and a hard drive.

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