Montana virology lab workers charged with smuggling monkeypox into the US

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan issued charges against two men who work at the Laboratory of Virology at the Rocky Mountain Laboratory in Hamilton.

The men, Vincent Munster and Claude Kwe, both researchers with the National Institutes of Health (NIH) at the Rocky Mountain Laboratory, were charged Tuesday in a criminal complaint with conspiracy to smuggle monkeypox into the U.S. and giving false statements to federal law enforcement.

The lab is considered a Biosafety Level 4 laboratory, which employs the highest level of biosafety precautions for scientific research of known and potential human pathogens, according to a press release from the office of U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr.

The charges are based on an investigation that began Jan. 25 when Munster and Kwe arrived at the McNamara Terminal at Detroit Metropolitan Airport. They had reportedly arrived from Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, where there was an ongoing outbreak of monkeypox.

“Munster and Kwe were inspected and interviewed by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials upon their arrival,” reads the release. “CBP officers observed Kwe and Munster traveling with a large black plastic case. Munster and Kwe falsely told CBP officers that the black case contained diagnostics and testing equipment. But subsequent investigation by CBP and FBI agents revealed that the case actually contained 113 vials in Styrofoam coolers. As of the date of the complaint, the FBI has tested 20 of the 113 vials. Seventeen of them contained deactivated monkeypox virus, one contained the Chickenpox virus, and two contained only human DNA.”

Munster, 53, is a citizen of the Netherlands, and chief of the Virus Ecology Section, Laboratory of Virology at the Rocky Mountain Laboratory in Hamilton. Claude Kwe, 38, is a citizen of Cameroon and a research fellow in Munster’s section, according to the release. The work of both men is reportedly focused on emerging viral pathogens and how those pathogens cross the species barrier.

“These NIH experts apparently broke our laws by smuggling viral pathogens on a packed commercial airplane from an outbreak in the Republic of Congo. Let that sink in,” Gorgon said in the release.

Monkeypox can result in painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes, fever, and other symptoms.

“No researchers should believe their positions, credentials, or professional status place them above the law,” said Jennifer Runyan, special agent in charge of the FBI Detroit Field Office, in the release. “The allegations in this case are serious. They involve the dangerous and unlawful smuggling of deactivated Mpox virus into the United States and alleged efforts to mislead our federal agents. I am grateful for the outstanding and diligent work of the FBI Detroit JTTF, FBI Billings’ Missoula Resident Agency, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection team at Detroit Metro Airport, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services – OIG, for keeping our communities safe.”

Munster and Kwe face a maximum sentence of five years in prison if convicted.

The investigation is being conducted by the Detroit Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Detroit and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General.

“We have zero tolerance for anyone who attempts to exploit our research frameworks, circumvent our border enforcement processes, or deceive investigators,” said CBP Director of Field Operations Marty C. Raybon in the release. “Along with our law enforcement partners, we will remain fiercely vigilant in neutralizing biological threats—or otherwise— and continue to hold accountable those who jeopardize the safety and security of the American people.”