Particle.news
Download on the App Store
20 ARTICLES
·
3w ago

Two NIH Researchers Charged With Smuggling Deactivated Mpox Into U.S.

Prosecutors say the arrests expose lapses in biosafety oversight, prompting formal reviews of lab controls and agency coordination.

Credit: U.S. Attorney's Office, the Eastern District of Michigan
FILE - This colorized electron microscope image provided by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in 2024 shows Mpox virus particles, orange, found within infected cells, green. (NIAID via AP, File)
Image
FILE - A sign announcing monkeypox vaccination is setup on Aug. 15, 2022 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Joe Raedle/Getty Images)

Overview

  • Federal authorities say Vincent Munster and Claude Kwe were stopped at Detroit Metropolitan Airport after a trip from Brazzaville and inspected by CBP on Jan. 25, 2026 when agents noticed a large black plastic case.
  • Investigators found 113 vials in Styrofoam coolers inside the case and the FBI tested 20 vials, reporting 17 contained deactivated mpox, one contained chickenpox virus, and two contained human DNA.
  • The Department of Justice charged the two NIH Rocky Mountain Laboratory researchers with conspiracy to smuggle mpox and making false statements, crimes that each carry up to five years in prison if convicted.
  • The FBI’s Detroit Field Office is leading the probe with CBP and the HHS Office of Inspector General involved, and NIH says it is cooperating while securing lab spaces and running inventories under established biosafety protocols.
  • The case has already broadened scrutiny of oversight at the BSL-4 Rocky Mountain Laboratory, drawn congressional attention and could lead to policy and procedural changes as criminal proceedings and agency reviews continue.