U.S. officials are disputing a viral claim that a Norwegian tourist was denied entry over a meme showing Vice President JD Vance with a bald head.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) officials directly addressed the allegation on June 25 via the agency’s official X account, posting: “Fact Check: FALSE.” The message was accompanied by a screenshot of a headline from a Daily Mail story that had helped fuel the controversy.

 

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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) echoed that rebuttal, posting, “ Only those who respect our laws and follow the rules will be welcomed into our country.”

The posts were the latest in a growing series of public denials from federal agencies responding to high-profile allegations of political or ideological bias in immigration enforcement.

According to the original Daily Mail article, 21-year-old Mads Mikkelsen told a Norwegian outlet, Nordlys, that he was detained at Newark Airport on June 11. He claimed he was pulled aside by border officials, questioned about terrorism and extremism, and eventually sent home after officials discovered a meme on his phone showing JD Vance with an exaggerated bald head.

“They asked questions about drug trafficking, terrorist plots and right-wing extremism totally without reason,” Mikkelsen alleged, adding that he was threatened with fines or prison time if he refused to unlock his phone.

After discovering the meme, he claimed that border authorities denied him entry to the country. The Daily Mail noted, however, that U.S. officials had since clarified that “‘Mads Mikkelsen was not denied entry for any memes or political reasons.’”

Mikkelsen’s story followed another case that drew international attention and a separate DHS rebuttal.

On June 12, Australian writer Alistair Kitchen was detained at Los Angeles International Airport during a layover en route to New York. Kitchen told The Sydney Morning Herald he was questioned about his views on the Gaza conflict and his past writing on pro-Palestinian protests. He was ultimately sent back to Melbourne.

“I was interrogated about my beliefs on the crisis in Gaza. I told him what I believe: that the war is a tragedy in which all parties have blood on their hands, but which can and must come to an immediate end,” Kitchen wrote.

A DHS spokesman later rejected his characterization, stating his claim that he was turned away over a meme or political views was “unequivocally false.”

Both cases come on the heels of an earlier viral episode involving former Australian police officer Nikki Saroukos, who said she was detained and deported from Honolulu on May 17 while attempting to visit her husband, a U.S. Army lieutenant, per Daily Mail.

Saroukos alleged she was “treated like a criminal,” strip-searched, and held overnight in federal detention despite having a valid travel authorization under the Visa Waiver Program. She said she was given no clear reason for her detention.

DHS later issued a statement via X, characterizing her claims as misleading. Officials said Saroukos was selected for additional screening due to her luggage contents and prior long stays, and that she could not recall her wedding date. The agency’s post said she had only recently married the soldier after meeting him in person for just eight days.