The JD Vance meme on the Norwegian’s phone. Credit: Facebook, Nordlys
A 21-year-old Norwegian tourist who claimed he was deported from the US for having a meme of Vice President JD Vance on his phone was actually turned away for admitting past drug use, US authorities have confirmed.
The incident at Newark Airport on June 11 has gone viral, prompting officials to deny the meme had anything to do with his removal.
Meme claim dismissed by US border authorities
Mads Mikkelsen, who is not the Danish actor of the same name, told Norwegian outlet Nordlys he was detained at Newark Airport during what was meant to be a holiday in the US. He claimed border agents interrogated him about terrorism, right-wing extremism, and drug smuggling, and then forced him to unlock his phone after threatening him with a $5,000 fine or five years in prison.
According to Mikkelsen, officers found a meme on his phone depicting US Vice President JD Vance as bald, which he believed was the reason for being denied entry and sent back to Norway that same day.
However, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) issued a blunt rebuttal:
“Fact Check: FALSE,” the CBP wrote on X. “Mads Mikkelsen was not denied entry for any memes or political reasons, it was for his admitted drug use” (Cited by The Independent).
Homeland Security deputy secretary Tricia McLaughlin echoed CBP’s statement, calling the story “false” and “BS” in her own post on X.
Mikkelsen later acknowledged to Nordlys that border agents did question him about past drug use and noted they had found another photo on his phone showing a wooden pipe he had made. He also claimed he was forced to give a blood sample while in custody.
Despite conflicting accounts about why the phone was searched in the first place, both Mikkelsen and US officials agree the border encounter happened. But while Mikkelsen insists the meme triggered his deportation, U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) maintains it was due to his drug-related admissions.
Under President Donald Trump, the DHS has expanded its power over immigration enforcement. In April, it announced new policies requiring visa applicants to make their social media profiles public and allowing agents to screen for “antisemitic activity.”
Should visitors fear digital surveillance at US borders?
As reports of phone checks and ideological profiling grow, where is the line between legitimate security and invasive censorship?
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