Mystery Device Possibly Tied to ‘Havana Syndrome’ Cases Acquired by U.S. Intelligence Agency

MIAMI - A mystery device possibly connected to hundreds of cases involving the debilitating condition known to the spy world as the ‘Havana Syndrome’ has been surreptitiously acquired by a U.S. national security agency in late 2024, according to multiple sources who spoke with CBS News.

During the final weeks of the Biden administration, the report says, the Department of Homeland Security’s HSI (Homeland Security Investigations) division “quietly acquired” a device officials believe to have been linked to over 1,500 cases in which U.S. diplomats and intelligence officials stationed in Havana, Cuba reported severe disruption in their neurological responses that included headaches, fevers, nausea, and vertigo.

Many officials also reported a high-screeching pulse sensation believed to be emanating just outside of their residences.

In November 2016, two U.S. intelligence officers working in a small sub-station in Havana began noticing high-pitched sounds late at night. Weeks later, the officers reported having developed severe headaches and constant ear pain and later received medical treatment at the American embassy clinic.

A few weeks later, two more officials reported symptoms, and eventually, a theory emerged that speculated that a new type of weapon was being used to harass the agents–a machine that was able to emit sound waves and cause what was later named the ‘Havana Syndrome’.

The device acquired by HSI was reportedly purchased with funds allocated for the U.S. Pentagon, and was in the eight-figure range, according to two people familiar with the matter, as was reported by CBS News.

The device was described as “portable, backpack-sized, and contains components of Russian origin.”

Former U.S. intelligence officials who have claimed to have suffered from symptoms have attempted to draw attention to their cases, even criticizing the CIA for failed security lapses.

In a 2022 CIA assessment of cases related to the named Havana Syndrome, the agency concluded that the “majority” of reported cases of unexplained medical symptoms known as “Havana syndrome” can be “reasonably explained by medical conditions or environmental and technical factors”, a senior CIA official told ABC News.

In 2023, the Biden administration officially labeled the occurrences as “Anomalous Health Incidents”, or AHIs, a finding that was later reconfirmed in January of 2025.

However, following the recent development regarding the mystery device acquired by HSI, former U.S. intelligence officials who tried raising concerns over the illness in the past are now calling on the U.S. intelligence community to reopen a new review.