The FBI and Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department raided two homes connected to the operator of a Reedley biolab arrested in 2023 for improperly selling medical testing equipment.

Inside the garages of the two homes connected to Jia Bei Zhu, officers found a “significant volume” of material “consistent in appearance to the items described in the Reedley, California, lab investigation,” said Kevin McMahill, sheriff of the Las Vegas Metro in a news conference Monday.

In 2023, investigators found vials of multiple deadly diseases, hundreds of gallons of biological fluids, and nearly 1,000 lab rats in the Reedley lab.

While the sheriff said nothing about lab rats, he did say investigators found multiple refrigerators, freezers, and other laboratory-type equipment, including centrifuges, a biosafety hood, and red drums containing liquids.

Between the two homes, there were three people renting rooms. Police do not suspect any involvement by the renters with the biological materials.

Authorities have sent liquids off to be tested, McMahill said.

In connection to the raid, authorities arrested Ori Solomon, who is the property manager for the two properties connected to Zhu, on charges of improperly handling and disposing of hazardous material. Court documents previously named Solomon as a proposed custodian for Zhu’s bail collateral, including his homes.

Fresno Attorney Tony Capozzi, who represents Zhu, did not immediately reply to a request for comment made by GV Wire.

Investigation Cannot be Rushed, Many Questions Unanswered: FBI

Authorities did not know the nature of what was being tested or if Solomon had been in contact with Zhu.

Authorities spent the weekend investigating the home after the raid began Friday. FBI special agent Christopher Delzotto said while many questions exist about the purpose for the lab equipment, the investigation “requires systemized, measured steps that cannot be rushed.”

“The truth is, we don’t know yet, we’re looking to see how to answer those questions,” Delzotto said. “We had an operational period where we were working around the clock. Now the tough part of the investigation has moved forward.”

Delzotto said the operation came after intelligence led them to the two homes connected to Zhu.

Police used drones and robots to examine the garage before safely entering, McMahill said.

Within the freezers, investigators found bags of vials and other testing equipment with a “high level of complexity” that has not yet been identified but was consistent with biological and chemical storage.

Zhu Still in Custody

Federal authorities arrested Zhu, also known as Jesse Zhu, David He, and Qiang He, in October, 2023 as part of a sting operation, coaxing him to return to Reedley after responding to a request for a settlement regarding destroyed property.

He was arrested for distributing and misbranding medical devices out of a laboratory run by Universal Meditech Inc. in Fresno. Though Zhu disputes his leadership role with the company, court records show him as a consultant.

A fire in the building forced the company to relocate its equipment to the Reedley warehouse without notifying anyone about the materials stored there.

A trial hearing for Zhu’s case is scheduled for Feb. 23. According to court records from 2024, U.S. Attorney Joseph Barton said a reasonable prison time for Zhu, if found guilty, could be eight years.

Judges have denied multiple defense requests for Zhu’s release on bail. Judges have said that Zhu’s ties to China make him a flight risk despite his attorney saying he does not want to return to the country.

“I think he’d be in deep trouble (in China),” Capozzi said, according to a court transcript.

In 2021, before the Reedley lab incident, Zhu requested asylum from China. Six days after the search warrant was issued for the Reedley lab, Zhu’s wife and newborn son flew to China on a one-way ticket, court records show. According to a declaration from Zhu’s wife, Zhaoyan Wang, she was not aware of the search warrant being filed. Wang is also Universal Meditech’s manager.

Zhu also has a civil rights lawsuit against the city of Reedley for destroying his property. The civil rights suit also claims he was excessive force and unreasonable search, seizure, and deprivation of property.

Update: In a news conference Tuesday, Fresno County officials announced they have been dropped from Zhu’s lawsuit.

Reedley Lab Took Months to Get Federal, State Authorities Involved: Zieba

Zhu made national news when a Reedley code enforcement officer discovered a hose coming out of the building rented by COVID test kit maker Universal Meditech Inc. Following up on the questionable hose, inspector Jesalyn Harper found questionable material inside the warehouse, prompting her to notify authorities.

Inspectors found hundreds of lab mice, more than a dozen deadly diseases, and hundreds of gallons of biological material stored unsafely within the building.

Despite calls from Reedley City Manager Nicole Zieba to both the California Department of Public Health, the U.S Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the FBI, it took a call to Rep. Jim Costa, D-Fresno, before authorities arrived to investigate.

To this date, Zieba said federal inspectors never tested the questionable vials or the contents within a refrigerator marked with “ebola” on the front. Federal authorities left Reedley officials to destroy everything in the laboratory.

She said throughout the event, nobody would test anything. Beyond the vials labeled with diseases such as malaria, COVID, and HIV, there were labels written in Mandarin Chinese.

“We had files that were labeled with a key code even and nobody cared about any of that, so it’s also a relief to me that what is happening in Vegas is being handled differently,” Zieba said. “Maybe people actually learned from the Reedley experience that they need to take this seriously.”

Zieba called the Las Vegas raid a “relief” emotionally.

“Ever since 2023, we knew there was an LLC named David Destiny. We knew there were shipments going to places in Las Vegas, et cetera,” Zieba said. “We knew that there was a connection in Vegas. We just didn’t know what it was.”