Documents released by Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., indicate that the FBI requested U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) halt an inspection of Peter Daszak, a British zoologist and disease ecology expert, at John F. Kennedy International Airport in February 2021. Daszak was returning from the World Health Organization's investigation into the origins of COVID-19.
The CBP's National Targeting Center had flagged Daszak as a "high person of interest" due to his extensive collaboration with the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV), his relationship with lead WIV researcher Zhengli Shi, and his role on National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants that funded bat coronavirus research in China. These grants supported gain-of-function research, according to the documents.
CBP officials had prepared to question Daszak about his activities in China, his contacts at WIV, and whether he had illegally collected or transported biological samples. The NIH had also reportedly asked Daszak to retrieve original type-specimens from WIV for genetic analysis and to provide data on his collaborations.
However, three days prior to Daszak's arrival, the FBI's New York Field Office requested that CBP not stop the subject. The documents include internal emails and flight itineraries that detail this interagency disagreement.
At the time of the planned inspection, Daszak was the president of EcoHealth Alliance, a nonprofit organization focused on pandemic diseases. He was a member of the WHO team investigating SARS-CoV-2 origins, a role that drew public criticism due to his financial and professional ties to the WIV.
Paul stated on social media that the released documents are the beginning of an investigation into what he described as "misdirection, conspiracy," and a "cover-up" that misled the public about the virus's origins. He launched "The Reading Room" online platform to share records related to his ongoing investigation.