LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — A man with ties to an illegal biolab in Las Vegas has been found guilty of charges associated with another illegal biolab in California.
After a two-week trial, Jia Bei Zhu, a Chinese national, was found guilty of fraudulently selling more than a million COVID tests for nearly $4 million through his Fresno-based company Universal Meditech Inc.
Zhu was convicted on one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, eight counts of substantive wire fraud, two counts of distributing adulterated and misbranded medical devices, and one count of making a false statement to the FDA.
His partner, Zhaoyan Wang, has also been charged in case and fled the United States shortly before Zhu's arrest. According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Wang "remains a fugitive from justice in China."
Trial evidence showed Zhu and Wang hired inexperienced employees, like cellphone salespeople, supermarket workers and childcare workers, who "would not ask any questions." Some of the employees were hired through the Fresno County Economic Development Corporation, which is a public organization that helps find jobs for unskilled workers and provides significant subsidies to employers that hire them, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Investigators state that between August 2020 and March 2023, Zhu, Wang and others at UMI conspired with each other to import faulty COVID tests from China and then sell them to customers based on several false representations, including the tests were authorized by the FDA, were made in the U.S., were made in connection with a certified medical lab, and worked.
You can see examples from their website below.
Several employees testified saying they knew what they were doing was wrong, but went through it because they did not want to lose their jobs and were afraid that Zhu would physically hurt them. Victims also testified stating the tests they received were missing basic parts and could not detect COVID.
It was a victim's civil lawsuit against UMI that led to a court-ordered inspection of UMI's Fresno facility. That inspection showed UMI "lacked the ability to manufacture COVID tests and that it was nothing more than an unsanitary warehouse that was far below established quality standards for facilities that house medical devices."
One example is inspectors found multiple fridges with pathogens and toxins in juice, soda, and other inappropriate containers.
Inspectors also found hundreds of boxes of COVID tests from China.
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, Zhu tried to escape the civil lawsuit against UMI by moving from Fresno to Reedley and changing the name of the company to Prestige Biotech Inc. However, that attracted the attention of the FDA, which began its own investigation.
Investigators from the FDA and CDC met with Zhu in May 2023 and he claimed to be another person, Qiang "David" He, who had recently come to the United States from China on an asylum application.
Evidence shown during the trial showed Zhu was previously an executive at a company called IND in Canada in the early 2000s, and that IND had gotten in trouble with the Canadian equivalent of the FDA for misconduct like this case. Investigators say Zhu came to the United States unlawfully and founded UMI shortly after.
Zhu also has ties to the illegal biolab that was found in Las Vegas earlier this year.
February 2026: Channel 13 video shows investigators searching the home in east Las Vegas
Clark County property records show the home where the lab was found, near Sugar Springs Drive and Temple View, is registered to David Destiny Discovery, LLC, which is a business registered through the Nevada Secretary of State's Office to David He, which is one of Zhu's aliases.
Investigators say they were tipped off by someone who worked at the home.
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That source identified Ori Solomon as the property manager.
Solomon is an Israeli citizen in the U.S. on a non-immigrant visa and is not allowed to possess firearms. Several weapons were seized from his home, according to an affidavit obtained by Channel 13.
Las Vegas police say the lab was primarily located inside a locked garage within the house. More than 1,000 samples were collected and stored safely at the Southern Nevada Health District laboratory before they were sent to the National Bioforensic Analysis Center in Maryland for testing.
CHANNEL 13 ARCHIVES: Who is Ori Solomon?
In March, the FBI revealed what some of the materials recovered inside the home were.
In a statement to Channel 13, FBI Las Vegas Special Agent in Charge Christopher Delzotto said most of the items recovered are consistent with components used to develop medical diagnostic test kits.
Investigators also found "components you would find in the Influenza A & B vaccines" and "older influenza samples; however, full genetic sequencing confirmed they were not new or engineered variants and there is no indication of an ongoing threat to public health at this time."
According to investigators, materials stored at the Sugar Springs garage may have been leftover from Zhu's activities in Reedley.
"Based on the totality of the investigation, there are no legitimate reasons for maintaining these types of biological materials within a private residence, or in the manner in which they were stored," Delzotto stated.
As for what happens next, Clark County District Court records show Solomon has been charged with one count of disposing or discharging hazardous waste. Court records show the next hearing in that case is on June 4.
Zhu is scheduled to be sentenced in federal court on Aug. 24.
He is facing up to 20 years in prison for the conspiracy charge and each of the wire fraud charges, three years in prison for each of the distribution of adulterated and misbranded medical device charges, and five years in prison for the false statements charge.
The illegal biolabs being discovered prompted biosecurity concerns from both law enforcement and lawmakers.
California Congressman Jim Costa has proposed the bipartisan "Preventing Illegal Laboratories and Protecting Public Health Act." That piece of legislation aims to close regulatory blind spots, strengthen federal oversight, and provide state and local officials with the resources needed to detect and dismantle illegal biolabs.
You can read that bill below.
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Las Vegas Metropolitan police are investigating a shooting that left a woman dead Tuesday morning in the southwest valley. Channel 13's Shakeria Hawkins reports live from the scene.
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LVMPD Lt. Robert Price shared details into what appears to be an early morning robbery that has left one woman dead in the southwest valley.
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