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The plot thickens. A group of Secret Service agents and officers sent to Colombia ahead of President Barack Obama were relieved of duty and returned home amid allegations of misconduct that involved prostitution, according to two U.S. government sources familiar the investigation. The 11 Secret Service members — both agents and uniformed officers — were interviewed Saturday at the agency’s Washington headquarters, after which they were placed on administrative leave, Assistant Director Paul Morrissey said in a statement.

They are under investigation after preliminary findings revealed that they brought back several prostitutes to the Hotel Caribe in Cartagena, sources told CNN on Saturday. Also Saturday, the U.S. military announced that five service members assigned to support the Secret Service in its assignment have been “confined to quarters” in Colombia after they violated curfew and “may have been involved in inappropriate conduct” at the same hotel. The statement, from U.S. Southern Command, did not offer more details, including whether prostitution was involved.

The command’s leader, Gen. Douglas Fraser, said he is “disappointed by the entire incident and that this behavior is not in keeping with the professional standards expected of members of the United States military,” according to the statement. The alleged misconduct overshadowed the start of the sixth Summit of the Americas, where the president was to focus on trade, energy and regional security. None of the agents or officers being investigated was part of the president’s personal protective detail and Obama isn’t based at the hotel. But dignitaries and journalists reporting on the hemispheric meeting were staying there, a U.S. government official said.

Rep. Peter King, chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, was briefed on the matter and told CNN that the government personnel brought prostitutes back to their rooms Wednesday night and “one of the women did not leave the room in the morning.” A hotel manager tried to get in the room, and eventually the woman emerged and said “they owed her money,” according to King. Similarly, U.S. government sources said there was a dispute between at least one Secret Service member and a woman brought back to his hotel over a request to be paid.

At least one of the women brought to the hotel talked with police, and complaints were filed with the U.S. Embassy, the sources said. “The Secret Service saw that report, and they immediately began an investigation,” King said. A hotel staffer gave Colombian security personnel the entire list of U.S. government personnel staying there, said a U.S. military official who couldn’t speak for attribution because of the ongoing investigation. A spokesman for Colombia’s National Police declined to comment, referring questions to the Secret Service. King, the Republican from New York, said the issue isn’t about any “criminal allegations but a dereliction of duty.” “My understanding is that there are no allegations of any crime being committed,” he told CNN’s Don Lemon. “It violates the Secret Service code of conduct.”

Secret Service spokesman Edwin Donovon said that the group of agents in Cartegena were relieved of duty Thursday — prior to the president’s arrival in Colombia — and replaced after “allegations of misconduct.” The U.S. government sources said that, because the trip already had a large security detail, only some of the recalled agents and officers were replaced. Still, the sources said there was no threat to the president. Morrissey, the assistant director from the Secret Service, noted his agency’s “zero tolerance policy on personal misconduct.” He said that putting the accused employees on leave is “standard procedure” as the agency conducts a “full, thorough and fair investigation.” “This incident is not reflective of the behavior of our personnel as they travel every day throughout the country and the world performing their duties in a dedicated, professional manner,” Morrissey said. “We regret any distraction from the Summit of the Americas this situation has caused.”

The U.S. military is conducting its own investigation and will mete out “punishment, if appropriate … in accordance with established policies and the Uniform Code of Military Justice,” the Southern Command said in its statement. A senior military official and senior Secret Service official decided the five U.S. service members would stay in Colombia, confined to their hotel except for work-related business, because their “special skills” were still needed, according to a U.S. military official. Barred from contacting others about the matter, they will return to the United States with the rest of their unidentified unit at the end of the mission, according to the military.

Ronald Kessler, a former Washington Post reporter who has written a book about the Secret Service, called the incident “clearly the biggest scandal in Secret Service history.” The Washington Post, which was the first to report the story, said it was alerted to the investigation by Kessler. Jon Adler — president of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association, which represents Secret Service agents and other federal law enforcement officers — urged caution in jumping to conclusions, characterizing the incident as “isolated” and not necessarily a scandal. “That’s just sort of an over dramatic interpretation of an isolated incident,” he said. “We have to trust the process of the internal review.”

While soliciting prostitution is legal in certain areas of Colombia, it is considered a breach of the agency’s conduct code, the government sources said. High-level officials in the Secret Service and the Department of Homeland Security were outraged over the incident, the sources said, noting that the investigation indicated the prostitutes were brought back to a hotel that had been secured for the summit. The president arrived in Cartagena on Friday, the same day he first learned about the incident, White House press secretary Jay Carney said from the coastal resort city. Obama will spend more time in Colombia, where security concerns had limited previous presidential trips, than any other U.S. president.

Two nearly back-to-back explosions in Cartagena — which caused only minor damage and no casualties, Colombia National Police spokesman Cantihho Toncell said — were a reminder of the violence that has gripped Colombia as its government has battled powerful drug cartels. Violence has significantly fallen off in recent years as the Bogota-based government, aided by U.S. extradition efforts, has successfully picked apart the cartels. Still, there is an extensive security presence in the walled colonial city of Cartagena for the summit — including more than 7,600 police officers and thousands more troops.

And, of course, Congress is weighing in. Rep. Darrell Issa, chair of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, said the Secret Service might be in need of wholesale change. “Is the whole organization in need of some soul-searching?” Issa asked. He was responding to the scandal that rocked the agency involving at least one prostitute which led to the expulsion of 11 Secret Service personnel from Cartagena, Colombia, where they were working in advance of the president’s visit for the Summit of the America’s.

On CBS News’ “Face the Nation,” Rep. Issa said he has not decided if he will hold hearings on the matter, but says there are many more questions that need to be answered. “We think the number [of Secret Service personnel involved] might be higher, and we’re asking for the exact amount of all the people who were involved,” Issa said. “How did this happen, and how often has this happened before? “Things like this don’t happen once, if they didn’t happen before,” he said.

Issa said a situation like this could cause indirect consequences – including blackmail – which is a national security concern. “We have to ask where are the systems in place to prevent this in the future,” Issa said. In a press briefing from Cartegena on Saturday, White House spokesperson Jay Carney said “the president does have full confidence in the United States Secret Service.” The agency said the incident has not impacted the president’s security. Although some of the personnel are said to be agents, none of the men involved are part of the president’s personal protective detail.

The incident at Hotel Caribe, involving two agency supervisors in Cartagena, resulted in 11 agents put on administrative leave. “The nature of the allegations, coupled with a zero tolerance policy on personal misconduct, resulted in the Secret Service taking the decisive action to relieve these individuals of their assignment, return them to their place of duty and replace them with additional Secret Service personnel,” Assistant Director Paul S. Morrissey of the Secret Service Office of Government and Public Affairs wrote in a statement. The Secret Service has not released details, but CBS News confirmed that at least one prostitute was involved with a member of the Secret Service. The U.S. Embassy was notified of the situation and the personnel were ordered from the country. The Secret Service immediately referred the case to the Office of Professional Responsibility to conduct an investigation. Prostitution is legal in Colombia, but Secret Service personnel are expected to follow personal behavior guidelines.

A Secret Service Agent procuring the services of a prostitute while on a Presidential Support Mission is somewhat salacious and sounds more like a movie script then a real-world affair but again seems a bit overblown if you will pardon the pun. The Agency does need to handle it’s “problems” as opposed to having the hypocrites in Congress pretending to be concerned. It does make me wonder what else these guys get away with while on official missions like this. Thank God none of them were accused of smoking a bowl!

PYONGYANG, North Korea — (DMN/CBS News) – In a well orchestrated celebration of it’s founder’s birthday, North Korea reinforced perceptions of who it’s enemies are while showing the world it’s military might. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un spoke publicly for the first time Sunday, just two days after a failed rocket launch, portraying himself as a strong military chief unafraid of foreign powers during festivities meant to glorify his grandfather, North Korea founder Kim Il Sung.

The young new leader, dressed in a dark Mao suit, appeared confident and calm as he read from notes before tens of thousands of people gathered in Pyongyang’s main square during meticulously choreographed festivities honoring the late Kim Il Sung, whose 100th birthday was Sunday. Kim Jong Un’s words mirrored what North Korea regularly says in its state media, but there was symbolic power in the images of the new leader, who is believed to be in his late 20s, addressing the country on state TV and then watching — and often laughing and gesturing in relaxed conversation with senior officials — as a parade of North Korean military troops and hardware marched by.

In the speech, he made it clear that the military will continue to have a dominant role in running the country, just as it did under his father and former leader Kim Jong Il, who died in December. He called for strengthening his father’s “military first” policy by placing the country’s “first, second and third” priorities on military might. Although the North endured an embarrassing failure Friday when its much-anticipated launch of a long-range rocket broke into pieces over the Yellow Sea shortly after liftoff, the address Sunday was seen as an expression of confidence by the young leader and a signal meant to show that he is firmly in control. It also provides a marked contrast with Kim Jong Il, who didn’t make public addresses during his later years, even at major events.

Outside analysts have raised worries about how the new leader, who has been seen but not publicly heard since taking over after Kim Jong Il’s death, would govern a country that is building a nuclear weapons program and has previously threatened Seoul and Washington with war. Kim Jong Un said the era when nuclear arms could be used to threaten and blackmail his country was “forever over.” He said his country had built a “mighty military” capable of both offense and defense in any type of modern warfare “Superiority in military technology is no longer monopolized by imperialists,” he said.

Kim also vowed never to let the country starve. “Our fellow citizens, who are the best citizens in the world, who have overcome countless struggles and hardships, it is our party’s firmest resolve not to let our citizens go hungry again,” he said. Much of Kim’s roughly 20-minute talk focused on the importance of the revolution spearheaded by his grandfather, saying that it was the North Korean government’s responsibility to work to realize the movement’s aspirations and live up to its values. Deemed the Eternal President, Kim’s grandfather — Kim Il Sung — was born on August 15, 1912. Some 33 years later, following North Korea’s liberation from Japan, he pledged in Pyongyang to build a nation on wealth, strength and knowledge. The grandson, Kim Jong Un, is now North Korea’s “supreme commander” — a title he has recently assumed, following the death of his father, Kim Jong Il. Elaborate and extensive 100th anniversary celebrations of Kim Il Sung’s birth have been in the works for years.

The United States and other countries had questioned whether there would be a smooth transition of power in North Korea when Pyongyang announced in mid-March that it would launch a long-range rocket despite a February deal with the U.S. in which it promised a moratorium on nuclear and missile testing in return for food aid, said one North Korea expert. Kim Jong Un’s speech Sunday was “an expression of confidence,” said the analyst, Kim Yeon-su of Korea National Defense University. “Kim Jong Un is trying to dispel lingering doubts about his grip on power.” By trumpeting the might of his country’s military in his first public speech, Kim Jong Un is also sending a strong message that he sees “himself as more of a military leader than a civilian one,” Kim Yeon-su said.

After Kim’s speech, thousands of troops goose-stepped through the square in tight formation, saluting the young leader as they passed. North Korea’s 1.2 million-man army is one of the largest in the world. Rows of infantry, tanks and heavy artillery were followed by a wide array of increasingly large truck-mounted missiles. The parade culminated in a roaring fly-by of five fighter jets. The speech was a good “first impression for his people and for the world,” said Hajime Izumi, a North Korea expert at Japan’s Shizuoka University. “He demonstrated that he can speak in public fairly well, and at this stage that in itself — more than what he actually said — is important. I think we might be seeing him speak in public more often, and show a different style than his father.”

North Korea defied the U.S. and others Friday by firing a long-range rocket that space officials said was mounted with an observational satellite despite warnings against pushing ahead with the provocative launch. Washington and others say it was a covert test of long-range missile technology. Hours after the rocket crashed into the sea, the country made an unusual admission of failure, but Kim did not mention the launch in his remarks Sunday. International condemnation of the rocket firing was swift, including the suspension of U.S. food aid, and there are worries that the North’s next move could be an even more provocative nuclear test. The U.N. Security Council denounced the launch as a violation of resolutions that prohibit North Korea from developing its nuclear and missile programs. The council imposed sanctions on North Korea after its first nuclear test in 2006 and stepped up sanctions after its second in 2009.

OKLAHOMA CITY, Oklahoma — (DMN) – 121 tornadoes hammered a large part of the Midwest yesterday and last night killing five people in Oklanhoma and spreading damage across several states. Three states face the possibility of more tornadoes today. Oklahoma emergency officials said five people died before dawn Sunday after a tornado hit in and around the northwest Oklahoma town of Woodward, the high winds damaging homes, toppling trees and downing power lines in that area about 140 miles northwest of Oklahoma City. The brunt of the damage was reported on the west side of the town of about 12,000, and in the neighboring community of Tangier.

Storms also were reported in Kansas, Iowa and Nebraska as a severe storm system raked its way across the nation’s midsection Saturday and Sunday. Lightning, large hail and heavy downpours accompanied the system. The Storm Prediction Center in Norman, Okla., which specializes in tornado forecasting, had warned of a “high-end, life-threatening event” nearly two days before the bad weather hit. It was just the second time in U.S. history that the center issued a high-risk warning more than 24 hours in advance. The first was in April 2006, when nearly 100 tornadoes tore across the southeastern U.S., killing a dozen people and damaging more than 1,000 homes in Tennessee.

The center’s spokesman, Chris Vaccaro, said the weather service had received at least 97 reports of tornadoes by dawn Sunday and survey teams would be heading out to investigate and determine the number of actual tornadoes, their highest winds, and the width and length of their destructive paths. Several large funnel clouds and tornadoes were photographed and videographed during the outbreak. In Kansas, a reported tornado in Wichita caused damage at McConnell Air Force Base and the Spirit AeroSystems and Boeing plants. A mobile home park was heavily damaged in the city, although no injuries or deaths were reported.

Iowa emergency officials said a large part of the town of Thurman in the western part of the state was destroyed Saturday night, possibly by a tornado, but no one was injured or killed. Fremont County Emergency Management Director Mike Crecelius said about 75 percent of the 250-person town was destroyed. Some residents took refuge at the City Hall. In Nebraska, baseball-sized hail shattered windows and tore siding from houses in and around Petersburg, about 140 miles northwest of Omaha.

Oklahoma

Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management spokeswoman Keli Cain said the state medical examiner’s office confirmed five fatalities in the Woodward area early Sunday but search and rescue operations were still going on hours after the tornado hit shortly after midnight. She didn’t know the gender or age of the victims or details of their deaths but several homes were damaged. “Significant damage and injuries have been reported,” she said in a statement. She had no immediate count of the injured or severity of injuries. Police said search and rescue units from neighboring communities were joining in the effort. Cain said authorities were anxiously awaiting daybreak Sunday to accelerate efforts to aid the injured and take stock of the damage.

National Weather Service forecasters had issued sobering outlooks that the worst of the weather in the Midwest and Plains would hit in the nighttime hours, predicting that conditions were right for exceptionally strong tornadoes. Weather officials and emergency management officials had worried most about what would happen if strong storms hit when people were sleeping, not paying attention to weather reports and unlikely to hear warning sirens. The National Weather Service said the deadly tornado hit Woodward at 12:18 a.m. Sunday.

Woodward Mayor Roscoe Hill said warning sirens sounded loudly on Saturday afternoon when advance storms rumbled through but he didn’t hear the sirens go off for Sunday’s tornado. He said the tornado struck a mixed area of residences and businesses and there were reports of possible damage to a mobile home park. “We had a little tornado earlier … and they blew all the sirens. When this one came in, our sirens weren’t working,” Hill said. He added that power was knocked out to thousands.

The American Red Cross said it would send relief trucks early Sunday from Oklahoma City and other locations, adding first responders in the Woodward area appeared to be pressed to the limit to handle the immediate disaster response. “They’re in chaos mode,” said Rusty Surette, a regional communications director for the American Red Cross in Oklahoma City, speaking of authorities in Woodward. He said Red Cross volunteers early Sunday had loaded up trucks with cots, food, water and medical and hygiene supplies to roll toward Woodward once the line of severe storms had passed. He also said a shelter was being established at a church in Woodward but expressed frustration that relief would have wait until the dangerous storms had passed in the early hours.

Kansas

Yvonne Tucker rushed to a shelter with about 60 of her neighbors at Pinaire Mobile Home Park in Oaklawn. She said people were crying and screaming, and the shelter’s lights went out when the twister hit. When they came back outside, they found several homes destroyed, including Tucker’s. “I didn’t think it was that bad until I walked down my street and everything is gone,” said Tucker, 49. “I don’t know what to do. I don’t know where to go. I’ve seen it on TV, but when it happens to you it is unreal. “I just feel lost.”

CBS Affiliate KWCH reports there are 100 homes in the mobile home park; 10-15 were destroyed in the storm and several others damaged. Authorities went door to door and have accounted for all residents except for one. A secondary search will start at eight Sunday morning. A hospital in Creston, about 75 miles southwest of Des Moines, suffered roof damage and had some of its windows blown out by the storm, but patients and staff were not hurt. Medical center officials were calling other area hospitals to determine how many beds they had available in case they needed to move patients.

At least 10 tornadoes were reported in Kansas, mostly in rural parts of the western and central sections of the state. A suspected tornado narrowly avoided Salina, meteorologists said. Another was on the ground for about a half-hour north of Dodge City. Sedgwick County, home to Wichita, declared a state of disaster and said preliminary estimates suggest damages could be as high as $283 million. Kristin Dean, who was among the Wichita mobile home residents taking shelter during the storm, said she was shaking as she was being pushed from home in her wheelchair. She was able to grab a bag of her possessions before going into the shelter and that was all she had left. She lost her mobile home, and the windows in her car shattered. “It got still,” the 37-year-old woman, who’s in a wheelchair after hurting her leg a month ago, recalled of the scene inside the shelter. “Then we heard a wham, things flying. Everybody screamed, huddling together. “It is devastating, but you know we are alive.”

Kansas Division of Emergency Management spokeswoman Sharon Watson said Rice County was the only other Kansas county to issue a disaster declaration. Several buildings in the county were damaged, including the one housing the sheriff’s department and jail. Inmates were transferred to another facility because of the damage. Homes were damaged or destroyed in 10 other Kansas counties, Watson said.

Nebraska

In southeast Nebraska, an apparent tornado took down barns, large trees and some small rural structures. Johnson County emergency director Clint Strayhorn said he was trying to determine the twister’s duration and the damage it caused. “I’m on a 2-mile stretch that this thing is on the ground and I haven’t even gotten to the end of it yet,” he said, walking the path of destruction near the Johnson-Nemaha county line. He didn’t immediately know of any injuries.

Iowa

A confirmed tornado struck a hospital in Creston, Iowa, blowing out windows and damaging the roof, John Benson of Iowa Homeland Security and Emergency Management said. There were no major injuries reported, and the patients were relocated to other area hospitals. In southwest Iowa, officials evacuated the entire population — roughly 300 people — of the town of Thurman after a suspected tornado struck Saturday, damaging or destroying three out of every four homes.

Warnings for more serious storms continued. Bill Bunting, chief of operations at the Storm Prediction Center, said severe weather is possible Sunday “from east Texas and Arkansas and up into the Great Lakes.” “The threat isn’t over with tonight, unfortunately,” he said Saturday.

Omaha, Nebraska this morning.

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