An aide to US vice president Joe Biden has apologised to a reporter after he was locked in a closet for hours to prevent him mingling with guests during a political fund-raising event.
The bizarre incident occurred when Scott Powers, a veteran political reporter for the Orlando Sentinel, turned up to cover a $500-a-head bash for Democrat Senator Bill Nelson at the home of developer and party supporter Alan Ginsburg.
As soon as he turned up at Florida mansion, a "low level" staffer hustled him into a storage closet and stood guard outside the door.
He was told he could only come out when the politicians were ready to give their speeches, some 90 minutes later.
Then, after hearing Biden and Nelson speak for 35 minutes, he was returned to the closet for the remainder of the event.
Spokeswoman Elizabeth Alexander said the decision was a "mistake" by an inexperienced staffer who had put Powers in the closet instead of a "hotel room", as was normal practice.
Sources: New York Daily News/ABC news
