Lab tests show substance found at White House was cocaine

Originally Published: 05 JUL 23 11:50 ET

Updated: 05 JUL 23 12:32 ET

By Kevin Liptak, CNN

(CNN) — Lab testing for the substance found at the White House on Sunday has come back positive for cocaine, a spokesman for the Secret Service told CNN.

Previous field testing showed a positive result for cocaine, but the substance was sent for further evaluation and testing, the Secret Service had said previously.

The substance was found near the ground floor entrance to the West Wing, a person familiar with the matter said. The location is where staff-led tours of the White House pass through on their way into the building.

The substance was found near where guests are asked to leave their cell phones before proceeding into the West Wing.

Those tours typically only occur on weekends.

Sources had previously described the substance as a white powder found in a small, zipped bag. It was found by Secret Service personnel conducting routine rounds of the building.

The discovery of the substance on Sunday evening triggered a brief evacuation as part of what the Secret Service described as “precautionary closures.”

President Joe Biden was at Camp David over the weekend and returned to the White House Tuesday morning.

Officials have said they are working to determine who brought cocaine into the building.

This story has been updated with additional reporting.

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