WASHINGTON — President Biden’s former Secret Service Director Kimberly Cheatle wanted to destroy cocaine found at the White House last year after a partial DNA hit in a national database — and before a culprit had been identified, according to a new report.
Cheatle was “really pissed off” when the request was rebuffed by subordinates who cited protocols requiring the evidence to be retained for seven years, RealClearPolitics reported.
Two sources told the outlet that Cheatle or someone speaking at her direction called the agency’s forensics division vault supervisor Matt White and asked him to dispose of the evidence, saying that Secret Service leadership wanted to close the case.
Three sources connected to the Secret Service told the publication that DNA had been recovered from the half-used dime bag, allowing for a “partial hit” in a national database shortly after the drug was found on July 2, 2023 — two days after a gathering of the Biden family at the executive mansion.
The Secret Service closed its investigation just 11 days after the cocaine was found — without interviewing any potential suspects — giving the impression that the agency wasn’t interested in learning the facts behind the embarrassing incident.
The small bag reportedly was retained following pushback against Cheatle, who had landed her post after a push by first lady Jill Biden’s office and her top aide Anthony Bernal, who serves as an important liaison between the extended Biden family and officials.
White’s superior, Secret Service forensics division chief Glenn Dennis, reportedly consulted with the agency’s Uniformed Division and decided not to destroy the cocaine.
“[The] protocol is, whether you act on the [DNA] hit or not, we still have to maintain evidence for a period of up to seven years,” one source told RealClearPolitics. “It became a big to-do.”
“A decision was made not to get rid of the evidence, and it really pissed off Cheatle,” a source told the outlet.
The current whereabouts of the cocaine and any possible future investigative steps are unclear following Cheatle’s resignation on July 23 following security failures leading to the assassination attempt against former President Donald Trump.
The cocaine was found at the White House in the downstairs of the West Wing near the Situation Room — in a locker used for cellphones and other personal items.
The discovery sparked intense speculation that a member of the Biden family might be involved, though the White House denounced such speculation as “irresponsible.”
President Biden’s adult children Hunter Biden, 54, and Ashley Biden, 43, have both abused cocaine in the past, and the 81-year-old president’s political foes joked that the eldest Biden, a lifelong teetotaler, may have even used it himself ahead of particularly energetic and lucid public remarks.
In a striking contrast with the cocaine case, the Biden White House in 2021 took a much harsher approach with staffers who admitted to using marijuana in the past — firing at least five aides as potential security threats, despite that drug’s legal status in many states and lower risk of addiction.
Abusing illegal drugs and engaging in other vices such as gambling and overspending has historically caused White House staffers to be denied security clearances and lose their jobs.
The Secret Service did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
