NIH scientists – Two NIH researchers at a Montana biosafety lab have been charged with conspiracy to smuggle deactivated mpox into the United States and lying to federal law enforcement after they were stopped in January at Detroit Metro Airport following a Delta flight from C
When a Delta Air Lines flight landed in Detroit in January, two researchers from the National Institutes of Health carried more than routine lab gear in their luggage, federal prosecutors say.
The case turned sharply when Customs and Border Protection and the FBI allegedly found 113 vials in their bags. including 17 that contained deactivated mpox virus. Federal prosecutors have now charged Vincent Munster. 53. and Claude Kwe. 38. both NIH scientists. with conspiracy to smuggle mpox into the United States and lying to law enforcement.
The charges were unsealed June 2 in U.S. District Court.
The accusation centers on a packed commercial trip and the specific paperwork the scientists allegedly provided—or didn’t. Prosecutors said the pair were stopped in January after deboarding Delta Flight 229, which originated in the Congo Republic where an mpox outbreak was occurring.
U.S. Attorney Jerome F. Gorgon Jr. for the Eastern District of Michigan said the NIH researchers “apparently broke our laws by smuggling viral pathogens on a packed commercial airplane from an outbreak in the Republic of Congo.”
Munster and Kwe are both researchers with NIH at the Rocky Mountain Laboratory in Hamilton, Montana, where prosecutors said they work in a Biosafety Level 4 lab—one of approximately 15 such facilities in the United States.
According to a criminal complaint filed by the FBI on March 17, Munster is a citizen of the Netherlands and serves as chief of the virus ecology section at the Rocky Mountain Laboratory. Kwe is a citizen of Cameroon and is described as a research fellow in Munster’s department.
Prosecutors said the lab uses “the highest level of biosafety precautions for scientific research of known and potential human pathogens.” The charging documents describe the facility as one designed for research of deadly airborne-transmitted pathogens with no known cures.
The travel details prosecutors say matter
On Jan. 25, Munster and Kwe arrived at Detroit Metro Airport onboard the Delta flight from Paris. Their travel originated in Brazzaville, Congo Republic, where there was a known mpox outbreak at the time.
Prosecutors said CBP officials inspected and interviewed the pair upon their arrival and observed them traveling with a large black plastic case. They allege both scientists falsely told CBP officers that the black case contained diagnostics and testing equipment.
After a subsequent investigation by CBP and FBI agents, prosecutors said the researchers were found with the virus in their luggage. Officials said the FBI has tested 20 of the 113 vials. Seventeen contained deactivated mpox virus, one contained chickenpox virus, and two contained only human DNA.
Prosecutors also said the scientists were stopped in January after deboarding Delta Flight 229.
What the case could mean for them
Munster and Kwe are scheduled to appear voluntarily in federal court in Missoula, Montana, on June 3, the Detroit Free Press reported, but they are expected to eventually travel to Michigan and face prosecution in Detroit.
Both are charged with conspiracy to smuggle mpox and lying to federal law enforcement.
If convicted, prosecutors said they face up to five years in prison each.
Attempts to reach Munster and Kwe for comment were not immediately successful.
Why mpox remains a public health concern
Mpox—formerly monkeypox—is an infectious virus that generally begins with flu-like symptoms, including fever, swollen glands, muscle aches, headaches and backaches, according to the World Health Organization.
It is most associated with a painful rash and low energy. The WHO notes that lesions typically begin on the hands and face, and some may be in the mouth or anus and therefore hard to see.
An infectious disease specialist at Weill Cornell Medicine and New York-Presbyterian previously described how lesions can cause severe suffering and can lead to pain when using the bathroom or eating.
The sequence of events—stopping a commercial flight, the alleged false description of a case, and the discovery and testing of vials—now sits in front of federal court as prosecutors argue the shipment crossed legal lines even though the mpox vials were described as deactivated.
For public health experts and the public alike, the case lands at a moment when mpox continues to spread and when questions about preparedness are still being asked—after lessons from earlier outbreaks were meant to change how fast and how carefully agencies respond.
Contributing to the reporting were Karen Weintraub and Tresa Baldas.
NIH Rocky Mountain Laboratory mpox monkeypox Vincent Munster Claude Kwe FBI CBP Delta Flight 229 Detroit Metro Airport Biosafety Level 4 federal charges biosafety
Deactivated still sounds sketchy… why even bring it on a flight?
So they were on a Delta flight from the Congo and had vials in their bags? I don’t care if it was “deactivated,” that’s a big no. Sounds like bureaucracy paperwork went wrong or something.
Wait I thought mpox was already not that serious like people say? But then they’re acting like it’s super dangerous viral stuff and lying?? also 113 vials is so many, like maybe they forgot to mention it, idk. This is exactly why we can’t trust lab people.
I’m confused bc the article says “deactivated mpox” which like… wouldn’t it be harmless? Then they say Biosafety Level 4 lab so shouldn’t they be trained and have everything approved? Maybe the real issue was just the paperwork and not the virus part. Still, flying commercial with that kind of cargo just sounds insane to me.