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Artist News Legal
Airport officials deny Morrissey’s accusation of sexual assault
By Andy Malt | Published on Friday 31 July 2015
A spokesperson for the US Transport Security Administration has denied any wrongdoing, after Morrissey accused a member of security staff at San Francisco International Airport of sexually assaulting him earlier this week.
In a post on his True To You fansite, Morrissey claimed: “Before I could gather my belongings from the usual array of trays [after going through security] I was approached by an ‘airport security officer’ who stopped me, crouched before me and groped my penis and testicles. He quickly moved away as an older ‘airport security officer’ approached”.
“Luckily I was accompanied by two members of British Airways Special Services, who were horrified at the sexual attack and suggested that I lodge a complaint”, he added.
In response to the singer’s accusation, a spokesperson for the TSA said: “TSA takes all allegations of misconduct seriously and strives to treat every passenger with dignity and respect. Upon review of closed circuit TV footage, TSA determined that the supervised officer followed standard operating procedures in the screening of this individual”.
They added: “During the screening process, if an anomaly is detected, secondary screening is required to ensure the passenger does not have threat items, such as explosives, concealed under clothing. TSA works with numerous groups to continuously refine and enhance our procedures to improve the passenger experience while also ensuring the safety of the travelling public”.
