A 21-year-old Norwegian tourist, Mads Mikkelsen, was reportedly denied entry into the United States after landing at Newark Liberty International Airport, allegedly due to a meme saved on his phone featuring US Vice President JD Vance with a bald, cartoonish face. Mikkelsen had planned to meet friends in New York and Texas and take a road trip with his mother, but his arrival took a drastic turn when he was detained by immigration officers.
He was taken into a room with armed guards, where he had to surrender his belongings, including his phone, shoes, and backpack. According to Mikkelsen, officials accused him of potential involvement in drug trafficking, terrorism, and right-wing extremism—claims he dismissed as baseless. He explained that the meme and another image of him holding a handmade wooden pipe were automatically saved from a group chat app and were intended as jokes.
Mikkelsen stated that officials forced him to unlock his phone under the threat of jail or a $5,000 fine. Despite explaining the context of the images, officers proceeded to search his items, fingerprint him, and collect blood samples. He was also compelled to provide detailed information about everyone he planned to meet in the US. Physically and mentally exhausted after a long journey, he was ultimately sent back to Norway the same day.
However, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) later clarified that Mikkelsen was not denied entry due to the meme but rather because he allegedly admitted to past drug use. This incident comes amid growing reports of European travelers facing difficulty entering the US under the stricter immigration policies reinstated after Donald Trump’s return to the presidency. Earlier in the month, Trump signed a new travel ban affecting 19 countries.
