Sarah Palin's put-down for agent in Colombian sex scandal

A U.S. Secret Service agent sacked for his role in the Colombian prostitute scandal claimed to have been "checking out" Sarah Palin while he was protecting her during the 2008 presidential election.

The revelation that senior agents once assigned to the Secret Service's most important positions were involved in the embarrassing episode came as the first pictures emerged of one of the alleged escorts.

David Chaney, a veteran agent whose father once guarded Lyndon Johnson, was one of three officers forced out of the agency after allegedly hiring prostitutes in Colombia ahead of President Barack Obama's arrival at a major international summit.

Yesterday, pictures emerged of the married agent gazing at Mrs Palin as he held open the door of a black SUV.

As friends on Facebook commented on the picture, Mr Chaney replied: "I was really checking her out, if you know what I mean."

The former Alaska governor responded furiously on Fox News, calling his conduct "pretty embarrassing". She also had a message directly for the man once assigned to take a bullet to protect her: "Check this out, bodyguard: you're fired. And I hope his wife sends him to the doghouse."

A further eight Secret Service agents have been suspended and nine members of the U.S. military are under investigation after a drunken night out in Cartagena in which they allegedly paid up to 21 prostitutes.

The New York Daily News published photographs of Dania Suarez, a 24-year-old mother whose argument with one of the agents over money brought the allegations to light.

Ms Suarez is said to have gone back to an upmarket hotel with the man after he agreed to pay her $800 (pounds 500) but in the sober light of morning he tried to make her leave with only $28 (pounds 17). An argument ensued, drawing in hotel staff, local police and eventually diplomats from the U.S. embassy.

The New York Times interviewed an anonymous woman believed to be Ms Suarez, who said she was overwhelmed by the political f! allout o f her encounter.

"This is something really big," she said. "This is the government of the United States. I have nervous attacks. I cry all the time."

She insisted that she was an escort rather than a common prostitute, saying: "It's like when you buy a fine rum or a BlackBerry or an iPhone. They have a different price."

Copyright (c) The Daily Telegraph