The cocaine found in a White House phone locker this summer was not pure, can reveal.
Secret Service tests showed the powder was crushed with baking soda, according to the evidence report from the crime scene.
“Results of preliminary testing showed signs of cocaine and baking soda in the West Wing,” the report said.
This comes after photos of the cocaine suitcase were published for the first time thanks to a Freedom of Information request from .
The illegal substance was found in locker No. 50 on Sunday, July 2, while the Biden family – including son Hunter – was spending the weekend at Camp David ahead of the Fourth of July holiday.
can exclusively reveal the first published photos of the bag of cocaine found in the White House on July 2nd
Less than a gram of the drug was found in a dime-sized ziplock bag in storage lockers in the West Entrance to the White House
Less than a gram of cocaine was found in Cubbie No. 50 at the White House on July 2, leading to a hazmat situation and subsequent 11-day investigation
The lockers near the west entrance to the White House where the cocaine was found on July 2nd
The discovery led to an evacuation of the West Wing and road closures around the White House, then sparked an 11-day investigation once the substance was identified as an illegal drug.
Documents obtained by also show that FBI Deputy Director Paul Abbate was involved in the investigation that embroiled the Biden administration in scandal this summer.
The Secret Service completed the investigation in less than two weeks due to “lack of evidence.”
The list of suspects was narrowed down to 500, but security footage was unable to identify the owner because the cameras were not focused on the locker area.
It is unclear whether any suspects were interviewed during the brief investigation.
Republicans have criticized investigators’ response and questioned why they failed to identify a suspect.
“How could the White House, arguably the safest place in the world, not identify the cocaine perpetrator?” “Something’s wrong,” Arizona Rep. Andy Biggs said on X.
Lockers are not assigned to specific staff, a source familiar with the facility told , but instead guests can select a locker and then take a key with them.
They are used by outside visitors to the West Wing, not by the White House or the Office of Presidential Staff.
The same source also said that someone taking a tour was the most likely culprit, since anyone familiar with the White House knows there is a bathroom just steps away where the contraband could have been washed away .
Documents obtained by include real-time updates, such as a description that a 1-by-1-inch bag containing a white, powdery substance was found near where passport holders placed their phones as they walked in [redacted].’
Another document states that the person who found the cocaine “was sure it was drug-related.”
Intelligence officials determined that the president was at Camp David and Vice President Kamala Harris was in Los Angeles at the time of the discovery.
“At this time there is no media coverage of this incident,” an initial Secret Service document said.
How could the White House, arguably the safest place in the world, not identify the cocaine perpetrator?
Something doesn’t add up. https://t.co/prKNve73Nv
– Rep. Andy Biggs (@RepAndyBiggsAZ) November 13, 2023
The new materials also included images of the West Entrance to the White House, which was near where the cocaine was found on July 2
Hunter Biden (left) and President Joe Biden (right) were at Camp David on Sunday, July 2, when the cocaine was discovered
As soon as news of the incident broke, the documents show Secret Service officials argued with reporters about whether the powder was cocaine.
The Secret Service also had to clarify the location, as initial reports of the incident indicated that the cocaine was discovered in the White House library, then in the West Wing lobby, and finally in the compartments at the West Executive Entrance.
An initial test conducted by DC Fire’s Hazmat team returned a positive result for opioids and amphetamines, while initial Secret Service testing was inconclusive.
“They will probably continue with what they got from the D.C. fire.” I can only speak to what the Secret Service is doing, and we have sent it in for formal review. “I’m not saying the D.C. fire is wrong, but we have a different process,” the Secret Service communications chief said in an email amid the barrage of media inquiries.
The FBI then got involved — at the request of Secret Service leadership, a document says — and sent the sample to a lab in Quantico.
Initial reports of the cocaine discovery said it was found in the White House library, then in the West Wing lobby and finally in the compartments near the West Executive entrance
In response to ‘s Freedom of Information Act request, the Secret Service released new images related to the cocaine investigation, including this notebook in which someone wrote that somewhere in the “West Wing” there was an “unknown Powder” was discovered.
There appeared to be tension behind the scenes over this move.
A redacted email dated July 10 was headlined “Clear the Air.”
In it, an official wrote that the substance was not at the National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center – which defends the US against biological threats – but at Quantico.
The officer wrote: “Special Agent.” [redacted] “Still awaiting final lab report and approval to have the item returned to Washington from his superiors, who are reportedly speaking with USSS (Secret Service) 8th floor personnel.”
Documents labeled ThermoFisher Scientific show that a more thorough test came back positive for cocaine, sodium bicarbonate and caffeine.
“The FBI’s examination of the substance also confirmed that it was cocaine,” a Secret Service news release said.
However, the FBI’s analysis of the fingerprint or DNA evidence on the “dime-sized” zipper bag revealed that there was no perpetrator.
“The ownership or individuals responsible for the initial placement of the item in the West Wing of the White House complex on July 2, 2023 could not be determined using DNA or latent print methods,” the Secret Service said in a statement from July 13th.
The Secret Service said the cocaine was sent for “destruction” on July 14, the day after the investigation was completed.
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre initially responded to the question of whether the cocaine could belong to Biden by saying they were not at home.
An investigator holds up the test that determined the substance was cocaine and not something more dangerous like anthrax
Among the Secret Service documents provided to was this one from Thermo Scientific, which determined the white powder was predominantly cocaine
President Joe Biden (left) and his family, including recovering addict Hunter (center), hosted a Fourth of July celebration at the White House two days after the cocaine discovery
She then hit out at a reporter who asked, five days after the discovery, if she could say “once and for all” that the bag did not belong to any Biden family member.
“You know, there has been some irresponsible reporting on the family and that’s why I have to address it here,” the press secretary said. “And I made myself very clear.”
“It was clear to me two days ago that the Biden family wasn’t here, they weren’t here, they were at Camp David,” she continued. “They weren’t here on Friday, they weren’t here on Saturday, they weren’t here on Sunday.” They weren’t even here on Monday. They came back here on Tuesday.’
The questions were asked because Hunter Biden wrote an entire memoir about his battle with drug and alcohol abuse, which also included descriptions of heavy cocaine use.
First daughter Ashley Biden also struggled with drug use and was in a rehab facility.
The president ignored repeated questions about the cocaine discovery.
In the days following the discovery, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan suspected that a construction worker may have brought the cocaine because it was found near the situation room, which was being renovated at the time.
“I want to say something about the Situation Room because I think there have been a lot of questionable reports on this topic,” Sullivan said at a July 7 briefing. “The Situation Room is not in use and has not been used for months as it is currently under construction.”
“We use an alternate situation room in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, so the only people entering and exiting the sit room during this time were workers making it operational,” he added.