Feds Spend Over $19,000 to Conclude Boy Scout Allegations Against Border Protection 'Unsubstantiated'

A federal review of the charge that a Customs and Border Protection officer pointed a gun at a Boy Scout during an inspection at the Alcan Port of Entry, Alaska has concluded that the allegation is “unsubstantiated.”

An Iowa Boy Scout Troop made national headlines in July when its leader said that a CBP officer pointed a firearm at one of the Boy Scouts in his troop during an inspection at the Alaskan checkpoint. The incident allegedly occurred after one of the scouts took a picture of an officer.  

The Office of Inspector General (OIG), Department of Homeland Security (DHS) conducted an investigation of the charges from July 25 – August 8 and reported them to DHS Sec. Jeh Johnson last week. The OIG made the findings public Monday. 

“This very serious allegation against a CBP officer, which was widely reported in the media, required the immediate attention of my office,” DHS Inspector General John Roth said in a statement. “We have made a concerted effort to discern the facts.”

According to OIG, Boy Scout Troop 111 Leader Jim Fox did not see the incident but said a couple of the members of his troop did. Attempts by the investigators to interview the two scouts who were identified by other adults on trip as those who saw the incident were unsuccessful.

OIG said in order to investigate the charges it looked at surveillance video, interviewed the scout leader, other adults on the scout trip, the officers involved as well as CBP leadership and Boy Scouts of America executive staff in Iowa. The CBP officers allegedly involved in the incident denied drawing their weapons. 

The OIG report noted that to date DHS OIG has spent $19,224.49 on the investigation. 

“All investigative leads have been pursued and exhausted,” Roth wrote in his memo to Johnson. “Based upon the investigation to date, we do not believe any CBP personnel acted inappropriately. The allegation appears to be unsubstantiated.”

The report further noted that the CBP officers did make a scout delete a photo his took of Port of Entry as photography is prohibited there. Additionally, according to the report, CBP officers also helped the troop with a flat tire.