US Secret Service ends White House cocaine probe, no video, fingerprints, DNA available
A general view of the West Wing of the White House, where over the Fourth of July holiday weekend cocaine was discovered in an entry area where visitors place electronics and other belongings before taking tours, in Washington, U.S. July 5, 2023. REUTERS
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. Secret Service said on Thursday it had concluded its investigation into cocaine found at the White House and said it had been unable to identify a suspect.
The cocaine was found “inside a receptacle used to temporarily store electronic and personal devices prior to entering the West Wing,” the Secret Service said, confirming earlier Reuters reporting.
In a statement on Thursday, the Secret Service said it had been unable to obtain fingerprints from the package that held the cocaine and could not obtain a sufficient DNA sample to compare against a pool of people it had identified who could have brought it into the White House. The statement also said there was no surveillance video footage found that sparked any investigative leads.
“Without physical evidence, the investigation will not be able to single out a person of interest from the hundreds of individuals who passed through the vestibule where the cocaine was discovered,” the Secret Service said. “At this time, the Secret Service’s investigation is closed due to a lack of physical evidence.”
