In the waning weeks of the Biden Administration in late 2024, the United States quietly purchased and acquired a device that officials believe may be connected to the debilitating condition known as Havana Syndrome, which more than 1,500 American officials, primarily diplomats and intelligence officials, have reported experiencing since 2016, according to multiple sources briefed on the matter who spoke with CBS News.
The Biden Administration tasked the acquisition of the device to the Department of Homeland Security’s Homeland Security Investigations Division, using Pentagon funding that exceeded eight figures, according to two people familiar with the matter. The device is portable, backpack-sized, and contains components believed to have been produced in Russia.
Three of the people said the Pentagon has been testing the device, which emits pulsed, radio-frequency energy, for more than a year, but did not offer details on the nature of the tests. They said the department’s investigators believe it may be capable of reproducing the effects described by victims of Havana Syndrome, a term derived from the cases first reported by U.S. diplomats and intelligence officers in Havana, Cuba, in 2016.
Victims of Havana Syndrome reported a spectrum of neurological symptoms, including severe headaches and head pressure, vertigo, nausea, and ringing or popping sensations in the ears. Many have described hearing an intensely high-pitched, painful sound that appeared to subside when they moved to another location. For some, the effects were so severe that they were ultimately forced to leave their jobs with the U.S. Government.
