FRESNO, Calif. – The House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party on Wednesday issued a report about an illegal biolab that was discovered in Reedley and called for a more coordinated response from federal agencies on similar issues across the country.
The committee’s report came after a subpoena was issued in September in relation to the lab found inside an old Reedley warehouse where multiple agencies investigated a number of infectious diseases and hazardous chemicals, including COVID-19, malaria, HIV and hepatitis.
In October, authorities arrested Jia Bei Zhu on suspicion of manufacturing and distributing misbranded medical devices and making false statements to federal agencies in connection with the lab.
The committee said Zhu is a citizen of China who had also lived in Canada, and accused him of transporting infectious diseases as well as stealing American and Canadian intellectual property. The committee also said Zhu was reportedly working with companies affiliated with the Chinese government and already had a warrant for his arrest and operated under an alias.
California Reps. Jim Costa and Kevin McCarthy serve on the committee and were joined by officials from Reedley. The committee criticized the slow action from federal agencies in responding to the concerns from local officials. It further outlined that the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Centers for Disease Control initially declined to step in or investigate despite repeated calls.
McCarthy praised the response from local officials from Reedley and Fresno County. He said the discovery was made by the sheer “luck of local authorities moving through and seeing something that didn’t seem right.”
But he said he’s concerned this may not be the first or last unauthorized lab of its kind.
“How many more labs are like this throughout America?” McCarthy said. “Is China involved in other labs inside America?”
A code enforcement worker made the initial discovery of Zhu’s alleged operation after she spotted a green water hose sticking out of what was supposed to be an abandoned downtown warehouse.
That code enforcement worker, Jesalyn Harper, joined Reedley City Manager Nicole Zieba in speaking to the committee on Wednesday.
Zieba thanked Rep. Costa for helping gather federal agencies to investigate the lab. She said she was proud that, despite 62-year-old Zhu’s alleged operations elsewhere, he was stopped in Reedley.
“I’m proud of this little city for not turning a blind eye and simply kicking them out to go elsewhere,” Zieba said.
Zieba said the entire investigation has been “complex and confounding.” She called for changes to how federal agencies regulate private medical labs and how infectious diseases can be transported and handled. She also requested more clear coordination among agencies.
I’m proud of this little city for not turning a blind eye and simply kicking them out to go elsewhere.Nicole Zieba
The company Universal MediTech, Inc. – a research and development company that was previously based in Fresno – was reportedly at the center of the lab’s operation.
The lab’s discovery fueled speculation and theories about its origins. Local officials said they had sparse communication with individuals associated with the lab, but phone numbers and addresses appeared to be traced to a Chinese province.
The committee also outlined Zhu received unexplained money transfers from Chinese banks, totaling up to $2 million. However, no direct connection was made between Zhu and the Chinese government. The committee did report anti-American comments Zhu made in the past on an online platform.
This is the latest report from the select committee on China. It comes as Chinese President Xi Jinping is visiting California for a business summit. The chair of the committee Rep. Mike Gallagher said the timing of the report and Jinping’s visit was not planned.
