U.S. Commerce Secretary John Bryson suffered a seizure, a department spokeswoman said in a statement on Monday after police in California announced he was being investigated for several hit-and-run car crashes.

Bryson, Obama's top trade official, was hospitalized in California but has returned to Washington, Commerce Department spokeswoman Jennifer Friedman said in a statement. The investigation into the crashes is ongoing, she added.

Earlier on Monday, police in Southern California said Bryson was found unconscious behind the wheel of his Lexus after crashing three times into two other cars. At least one crash is being investigated as a felony hit-and-run.

John Bryson