A St. Louis man who provided security for U.S. Rep Wesley Bell during a town hall meeting Tuesday has been put on administrative leave by his employer, Affinia Healthcare, according to a company statement.
Bell’s tense town hall in downtown St. Louis ended Tuesday evening with protesters criticizing him over his support of Israel and its war in Gaza that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians.
Security guards eventually got into an altercation with protesters. Some attendees were pushed to the ground and had their hair pulled.
Affinia said in a statement Friday that the company was made aware of a disturbing video in which an individual was providing security in a role not related to the company.
“In the video in question, an employee was working in a private capacity, providing security for an external group,” the statement reads. “The incident did not occur on Affinia Healthcare property; the event was not sponsored by, or affiliated with, our organization. We are examining the videos and will investigate the actions in question.”
The St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department said in a message on X earlier Friday that many of the officers deployed were not part of the department.
A spokesperson for Bell said some individuals who provided security that night were not permanent members of Bell’s staff.
The U.S. House of Representatives increased funding last month to strengthen security for members of Congress following the assassinations of Minnesota state Rep. Melissa Hortman and her husband. Minnesota state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife were shot the same day. Lawmakers said the funding is intended to help protect members of Congress in their home districts.
The funding doubled the amount of money House members could use to install home defense systems to $20,000. It also increased the amount of money members can spend on security from $150 to $5,000 a month for the remainder of the fiscal year. Those funds could be used to hire security officers.
The House passed the Residential Security Program in 2022 after the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol.
Video provided to St. Louis Public Radio shows an interaction between security and attendees.
