BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (AP) – The Argentine government confirmed on Wednesday that a daughter of President Bush had her purse stolen during a visit to the Argentine capital, despite the presence of Secret Service agents and local police.

“The daughter of the president was on a tour in a typical tourist place, left her bag on the floor and it was stolen,” Interior Minister Anibal Fernandez told reporters, confirming U.S. and Argentine media reports.

“There isn’t much I want to say about this topic,” he said.

Fernandez did not say which of Bush’s twin daughters was robbed and said that the incident had not been reported to police.

ABC News, citing unidentified law enforcement reports, reported on its Web site Tuesday that Barbara Bush’s purse and cell phone were taken.

La Nacion newspaper, citing anonymous government sources, said in its online edition early Wednesday that the incident occurred Sunday afternoon in the popular tourist district of San Telmo.

It said a pair of thieves removed the purse from under a table while Secret Service agents stood guard at a distance.

Argentine police told The Associated Press they had no complaint of any such incident on file. The White House, the Secret Service and State Department in Washington and U.S. Embassy in Buenos Aires all declined comment.

Barbara’s twin, Jenna, visited neighboring Paraguay last month to take part in a UNICEF program for young professionals.


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