KJZZ is a service of Rio Salado College,
and Maricopa Community Colleges

Copyright © 2025 KJZZ/Rio Salado College/MCCCD
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Report shows increase in DNA samples taken by Customs and Border Protection

DNA collection by U.S. Customs and Border Protection has rapidly increased since the final year of the Trump administration.

A new report from Congress’s watchdog says last fiscal year DNA samples were taken from about 634,000 people.

CBP requires DNA samples from people whose fingerprints are taken, those arrested on suspicion of having committed a federal crime and certain detained migrants.

The info goes into a FBI database. Matches become investigative leads.

The Government Accountability Office says DNA collected by CBP led to 227 database hits since late 2019.

The report says that DNA was taken from more than a third of people CBP encountered last fiscal year.

But a collection kit shortage meant that not everyone who should have had their cheek swabbed actually did.

Matthew Casey has won Edward R. Murrow awards for hard news and sports reporting since he joined KJZZ as a senior field correspondent in 2015.