Internal documents obtained by CBS News’ Catherine Herridge have revealed allegations of retaliation by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) against whistleblowers who exposed a stunning agency failure. The controversy centers around the agency’s purported refusal to implement a crucial public safety law involving DNA collection from detainees accused of immigration violations—a lapse that whistleblowers claim has compromised American safety.
The leaked government memo detailed accusations that CBP retaliated against employees who exposed “the agency’s intentional, decade-long failure to enforce the DNA Fingerprint Act of 2005.” The law mandates the collection of DNA samples from non-U.S. persons detained on immigration charges to bolster public safety and aid criminal investigations.
The whistleblowers, Mark Jones, Fred Wynn, and Michael Taylor, bring a collective 69 years of law enforcement expertise to the table. Each of them has been granted top-secret clearances, including Sensitive Compartmented Information (SCI), which protects highly sensitive sources and methods. Their respective tenures are 20, 18, and 31 years.
In an exclusive interview with Herridge, the three of them said that the failures of CBP have directly contributed to preventable American deaths. They claimed that had the law been properly enforced, numerous violent offenders might have been apprehended sooner, potentially preventing crimes, including the tragic case of a 37-year-old Maryland woman killed by a suspect who, they say, could have been stopped had his DNA been collected during previous detentions.
“Are you alleging that Homeland Security’s failure to comply with the DNA collection law may have been a contributing factor in Rachel Morin’s death?” Herridge asked.
“It may have been a contributing factor. Yes,” said Fred Wynn.
“No question in your mind?” asked Herridge.
“None…had the subject had DNA taken the first time they were encountered, there would’ve been an instant possibility that any future criminal activity would’ve been stopped immediately, and there was definite potential for the individual to be apprehended,” Wynn said.
WATCH:
