US Dept of Justice;
According to the criminal complaint, Vincent Munster, a citizen of the Netherlands, 53, is the Chief of the Virus Ecology Section, Laboratory of Virology at the Rocky Mountain Laboratory in Hamilton, Montana. Claude Kwe, a citizen of Cameroon, 38, is a research fellow in Munster’s section. The work of both men is focused on “emerging viral pathogens” and how those pathogens “cross the species barrier.” They work at a Biosafety Level 4 laboratory, which employs the highest level of biosafety precautions for scientific research of known and potential human pathogens.
On January 25, 2026, Munster and Kwe arrived at the McNamara Terminal at Detroit Metropolitan Airport with travel originating from Brazzaville, Republic of Congo, where an outbreak of monkeypox was occurring. Monkeypox is an infectious virus that can result in painful rash, enlarged lymph nodes, fevers and other ailments.
Munster and Kwe were inspected and interviewed by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials upon their arrival. 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.