No DNA or fingerprints were found on a bag of cocaine found in a lobby at the White House, the Secret Service has said.
Officials discovered the bag in a West Wing Lobby during a routine sweep on July 2.
On Thursday, the Secret Service said that FBI tests did not develop any “fingerprints and insufficient DNA was present for investigative comparisons”.
“There was no surveillance video footage that produced investigative leads,” a Secret Service statement added.
“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.”
Following questions raised by Republicans, Joe Biden, who was at Camp David with members of his family at the time, said it was “incredibly important” for the Secret Service to get to the bottom of the matter.
Prior to the conclusion of the investigation, national security adviser Jake Sullivan told reporters: “The only people coming in and going out of the Sit Room in this period have been workers who are getting it ready to go.”
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre described the location involved as “highly travelled,” saying that “West Wing visitors come through this particular area.”
The lobby is open to staff-led tours of the West Wing, which are scheduled for non-working hours on weekends and evenings.
Those tours are invitation-only and led by White House staff for friends, family and other guests. Most staffers who work in the complex can request an evening or weekend tour slot, but there is often a long waiting list. There were tours on the day, a Sunday, the drugs were found, as well as on the two preceding days.
The complex was briefly evacuated as a precaution when the white powder was found.
The fire department was called in to test the substance on the spot to determine whether it was hazardous, and the initial test came back negative for a biohazard but positive for cocaine.
The Secret Service is responsible for securing the White House and is leading the investigation.
