WASHINGTON (AP) — The security chief for the head of the Environmental Protection Agency worked on the side as a private investigator for the owner of a tabloid news company with close ties to President Donald Trump.
A person with knowledge of the company’s internal workings tells The Associated Press that EPA special agent Pasquale “Nino” Perrotta performed regular work for National Enquirer publisher American Media Inc. during the 2016 election.
But unlike another private investigator hired by the Enquirer, Perrotta didn’t work on such newsroom projects as tracking down sources. Instead, the person tells the AP that Perrotta was engaged to discretely handle investigative work at the direction of AMI chairman and CEO David Pecker.
The person wasn’t authorized to speak publicly about the company’s operations and spoke on condition of anonymity.