New photos show the “filth” and unsafe conditions in which an illegal Chinese-owned laboratory in California conducted risky research on mice genetically altered to carry COVID-19, according to records obtained by a conservative legal group.
The Fresno County Department of Public Health revealed the “dangerous and non-compliant conditions” of the illegal lab, which harbored SARS-CoV-2 and other “infectious agents.”
The stunning assessment was found in documents responsive to a California Public Records Act request made by Judicial Watch.
“Americans should know that dangerous biological research is not just happening in ‘Wuhan,’ it’s happening across the United States,” Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton said in a statement.
New photos show the “filth” and unsafe conditions in which an illegal Chinese lab in California conducts risky research on mice genetically altered to carry COVID-19. Fresno County Public Health Department The Fresno County Public Health Department revealed the “dangerous and non-compliant” illegal lab after a California Public Records Act request by the Judicial Watchdog. Fresno County Public Health Department
The 29-page report revealed that the research facility, run by Chinese nationals through a company called Prestige BioTech, was repeatedly hit by security breaches at two locations in Fresno County between 2020 and 2023.
One of the labs, in the small town of Reedley, Calif., was slapped in December 2022 with “multiple code, building and zoning violations for businesses, and has concerns about possible hazardous materials being stored at [the] facility,” which prompted a referral to the FBI regarding a “potential public safety risk,” according to an Aug. 8, 2023 slideshow from the Fresno Department of Public Health.
The records request also turned up photos from Fresno authorities’ arrest warrants for “destroying” hazardous materials at the lab.
A 29-page report from the group revealed that the research facility, run by Chinese nationals through a company called Prestige BioTech, had been repeatedly breached with security breaches. Fresno County Department of Public Health A records request also released photos from Fresno authorities’ abatement warrant to “destroy” hazardous materials at the lab. Fresno County Department of Public Health
The images depict the “aggravation of excrement” in the cages where 951 rats were kept for the experiment, 178 of which had died due to the rancid conditions.
Rats have resorted to “cannibalism” and “scissoring”, where the more dominant rat tears off the hair and skin of the inferior.
“Many have mixed sex” due to uncontrolled reproduction and some have tumors and other medical problems.
A separate investigation by the CDC determined the lab did not harbor at least 20 infectious, bacterial and viral diseases, including HIV 1 and 2, malaria and SARS-CoV-2. Fresno County Department of Public Health
The remaining 773 rats were then euthanized and discarded.
A separate investigation by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention determined the lab did not harbor at least 20 infectious, bacterial and viral diseases, including chlamydia, E. coli, HIV 1 and 2, malaria and SARS-CoV-2, court filings in Fresno County also show. .
Wang Zhaloin, a supervisor at the lab, also told investigators that mice had been genetically engineered to catch and carry COVID-19.
The rats have resorted to “cannibalism” and “scissors”, where the more dominant rat tears off the hair and skin of the inferior. Fresno County Department of Public Health
Another lab, located in Fresno, initially failed to properly store hazardous materials in August 2020 and then violated health code regulations again “regarding stored chemicals” at the facility in October 2022.
The first lab was closed by Fresno’s then-chief health officer, Dr. Rais Vohra, on May 31 this year. Prestige BioTech was registered as a business in Nevada but was not licensed to establish a facility in California.
The second maintains a valid permit from September 1, 2020, to August 31, 2021.
The photos show the “gross filth” in the cages that housed 951 rats for the experiment, 178 of which had died from the rancid conditions. Fresno County Department of Public Health
Both are operated by Universal MediTech, a subsidiary of Prestige BioTech, which issued a nationwide recall of its COVID-19 test kits in February following its coordination with Fresno authorities to investigate the lab.
President of Prestige Biotech, Xiuquin Yao was also unable to produce a license or certification to state authorities allowing breeding or experiments on mice.
David He, a representative for Prestige, also falsely told authorities that there was no infectious material in the lab.
The first lab was closed by Fresno’s then-chief health officer, Dr. Rais Vohra, on May 31, 2023. The second lab maintains a permit valid from September 1, 2020, to August 31, 2021. Fresno County Department of Public Health
House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic Chairman Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio) asked FBI Director Christopher Wray and HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra for documents and communications about the Reedley lab in August.
Investigations by the FBI, FDA, California Department of Public Health and EPA are ongoing.
A House panel will hold a hearing on Wednesday to discuss biosafety and biosecurity standards in the US, in an effort to protect the country from future outbreaks.
“Ensuring improved and modernized biosafety and biosecurity standards across the public and private sectors is an obvious step after the COVID-19 pandemic,” said Wenstrup. “Unfortunately, the Wuhan Institute of Virology has an extensive history of conducting risky for-profit research at inadequate levels of biosafety, and American public health authorities have been made aware of these risks. As we prepare to protect our country from another potential public health crisis, assessing the effectiveness of our current biosecurity policies is essential to implementing appropriate future protection.”
Judicial Watch has also found more than $11 million in Pentagon funding for research at laboratories in Ukraine, including activities involving anthrax, according to a November 2022 report.
The group is best known for various lawsuits involving former President Bill Clinton and failed 2016 presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, but also sued former Vice President Dick Cheney over alleged fraud related to his former oil services company, Halliburton.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
