The House Committee on Energy and Commerce is examining the National Institutes of Health after two of its scientists were charged with smuggling deactivated mpox virus into the United States and misleading federal investigators, according to a letter sent to NIH Director Dr. Jay Bhattacharya on June 16.
Federal prosecutors allege that Dr. Vincent Munster, 53, a Dutch national and chief of the virus ecology section at the NIH’s Rocky Mountain Laboratories in Hamilton, Montana, and Claude Kwe, 38, a research fellow from Cameroon, transported vials containing inactivated monkeypox virus — now known as mpox — into the country without declaring them to customs and then lying about it.
Rocky Mountain Laboratories is an NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases facility that houses biosafety level 4 laboratories, the highest level of biocontainment, where researchers study dangerous pathogens including Ebola and Nipah virus.
According to a criminal complaint filed on June 2, the scientists arrived at Detroit Metropolitan Airport on January 25 after a nine-day research trip to the Republic of Congo, where they had been studying the mpox strain linked to the country’s outbreak. In 2024 alone, Africa reported 80,276 suspected cases of mpox and 1,340 deaths from the disease, which can cause fever, swollen lymph nodes and a painful rash. MSI previously reported that Congo declared an end to its two-year mpox outbreak on April 2, after the outbreak was linked to more than 2,200 suspected deaths. Read that article.
Customs and Border Protection officials questioned the scientists about a large black plastic case they were carrying, prosecutors said. The researchers allegedly told officials the container held diagnostic and testing equipment and indicated that required documentation was on Munster’s laptop. A subsequent inspection uncovered 113 sealed laboratory vials packed inside styrofoam coolers, according to the complaint.
Laboratory analysis has so far examined 20 of the vials, authorities said. Seventeen contained inactivated monkeypox virus, one contained chickenpox virus and two contained human DNA. The contents of the remaining vials have not been publicly identified.
The importation of biological agents, including deactivated samples, is subject to strict regulatory requirements in the United States. Prosecutors allege that Munster and Kwe required authorization and documentation to transport such materials on a commercial flight and to declare them upon entry.
Both men were charged on June 2 with conspiracy to smuggle mpox into the U.S. and giving false statements to federal law enforcement. They pleaded not guilty at a hearing in Missoula, Montana, on June 3 and were released on bail after surrendering their passports. Each faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison if convicted.
Announcing the charges, U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr. said the allegations represented a serious breach of federal law. “These NIH experts apparently broke our laws by smuggling viral pathogens on a packed commercial airplane from an outbreak in the Republic of Congo,” he said. “Let that sink in.”
Marcus Sykes, a special agent with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General, said: “Any deliberate effort to conceal and smuggle biological materials into the United States without proper authorization is a breach of the public’s trust and could have placed the public at risk.”
The House committee’s letter to Bhattacharya, dated June 16, requested details about Munster and Kwe’s work, the origin and transport of the biological samples, whether the NIH authorized or was aware of the trip, and the agency’s response after learning of the allegations. The committee is also seeking a timeline of the NIH’s responses, including any prior compliance concerns involving the researchers.
The criminal charges have also renewed scrutiny of Rocky Mountain Laboratories’ biosafety protocols. In a May 26 letter to the HHS inspector general, Sen. Tim Sheehy, R-Mont., called for an independent investigation into the facility’s biosecurity and personnel practices, citing a whistleblower complaint submitted to the organization White Coat Waste. Sheehy pointed to two reported employee exposures to the potentially fatal Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus — one involving a monkey bite and another a failure of protective clothing — both of which have since been confirmed by the NIH.
Sheehy also cited claims that Munster retained access to the high-containment lab after being detained by authorities. HHS did not respond to requests for comment.
An NIH spokesperson said the agency was notified of the airport incident in January and immediately implemented established protocols to secure laboratory facilities, research materials and biological samples. “NIH also took appropriate personnel actions and took all relevant steps to confirm that there was no risk at any time to staff or the public in or around the RML facility,” the spokesperson said. “This matter is currently under investigation, and NIH is cooperating fully with law enforcement. NIH leadership continues to prioritize biosafety across the agency and promote a culture of accountability, compliance, and responsible scientific research throughout the biomedical research enterprise.”
Kwe’s lawyer, Benton Martin, said: “Mr. Kwe is presumed innocent and we will await further proceedings before commenting further.” Munster did not respond to requests for comment.