DNA For Cash? Offer Has Some Louisville Residents Concerned

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE 3)- Some residents are concerned after a man in a white van asked for DNA samples in exchange for $20.

According to WAVE 3 News, who first reported the story, it’s been happening in some of Louisville’s poorest neighborhoods and is being offered only to Passport customers.

Employees in a white van set up shop in a minority neighborhood and offer $20 for a swab. Some people who took the offer said they felt weird about it afterward.

Passport Health told WAVE that the group is not affiliated with them.  University of Louisville Analytical Chemistry Professor Dr. Aleeta Powe said swabs can only check for genes that may be connected to certain cancers.

So far the group’s identity and their motive remain a mystery.