California
Suspected biolab in Las Vegas tied to 2023 California case, police say
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Federal and local authorities are investigating a suspected biological laboratory found inside a Las Vegas residence that they said is owned by a person connected to a 2023 illegal biolaboratory probe in Central California.
A SWAT team with the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department assisted the Federal Bureau of Investigation with serving a search warrant at a residence in northeast Las Vegas on Saturday, Jan. 31, according to police. During the search, police said investigators discovered “evidence of possible biological material to include refrigerators with vials containing unknown liquids.”
The search ended early on Monday, Feb. 2, and authorities said investigators recovered over 1,000 pieces of evidence from the residence.
“(Las Vegas police) utilized several technology platforms to safely enter and assess the location before investigators entered the home,” police said in a statement. “Some of that evidence included biological material and liquids that were meticulously collected and sent to FBI labs for testing.”
Further investigation revealed that the residence’s owner was tied to a 2023 illegal biolaboratory investigation in rural California, according to police. The owner, Jia Bei Zhu, has been in federal custody on charges related to the California investigation.
Another suspect, Ori Solomon, 55, was arrested in connection with the Las Vegas investigation and was booked into the Clark County Detention Center for disposing of and discharging hazardous waste, police said. Solomon was the property manager for the Las Vegas residence and a nearby home that was also searched, according to police.
Laboratory-type equipment, containers with unknown substances discovered inside garage
In an update on Monday, Feb. 2, police said they received information over a week ago that laboratory equipment and potentially hazardous materials may have been stored inside a residence in northeast Las Vegas.
“As investigators looked deeper, they learned the property owner was connected to a 2023 illegal biological laboratory investigation in Reedley, California,” police said in a statement. “In that California case, investigators reportedly discovered materials possibly associated with infectious diseases, including hepatitis, COVID-19, HIV, malaria, and other potentially dangerous pathogens.”
Though it was unknown at the time whether similar materials were present at the Las Vegas residence, police said they launched a joint investigation with the FBI, local fire departments, and other state agencies.
Shortly before 6 a.m. local time on Saturday, Jan. 31, police said a SWAT team served a search warrant at the residence and removed three people who were renting rooms inside the home but were not involved in the investigation. Investigators then searched a locked garage at the home they believed contained the potentially hazardous materials.
During the search, police said they deployed drones and a tactical robot to clear the area and conduct air sampling before personnel wearing protective equipment entered the garage.
At a news conference, Las Vegas Sheriff Kevin McMahill said investigators immediately observed numerous items, including laboratory-type equipment and containers with an unknown liquid substance, that were “consistent in appearance to the items found and described” in the 2023 California investigation.
“Initial search of the garage… identified a bio-safety hood, a bio-safety sticker, a centrifuge, multiple refrigerators, red-brown unknown liquids in gallon-sized containers and refrigerated vials with unknown liquids,” Christopher Delzotto, FBI Special Agent in Charge at the Las Vegas office, said during the news conference.
Police noted that due to the “unknown nature of the materials,” the operation required multiple controlled entries and decontamination procedures. Evidence collection continued through Sunday, Feb. 1, and the materials were later transferred to an FBI laboratory for testing.
Remediation of the residence was completed at about 2:30 a.m. local time on Monday, Feb. 2, and final site checks were conducted before the scene was cleared and confirmed safe, according to McMahill.
2023 California biolab investigation
A monthslong investigation into a rural California warehouse uncovered an illegal laboratory filled with samples of infectious agents, medical waste, and mice bioengineered “to catch and carry the COVID-19 virus,” local authorities said in July 2023.
At the time, authorities said a Chinese medical company registered in Nevada was operating the unlicensed facility in Reedley, California, a small city southeast of Fresno, California. Health officials launched an investigation into the facility in December 2022 after a code enforcement officer noticed a garden hose attached to a building that was presumed to be vacant and had no active business license.
Further inspection revealed that the facility housed various chemicals, suspected biological materials, bodily fluids, and hundreds of lab mice, among other lab supplies, according to court documents.
In October 2023, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California announced that Zhu, who also used various other aliases, had been arrested for manufacturing and distributing misbranded medical devices and for making false statements to the Food and Drug Administration.
From December 2020 to March 2023, prosecutors said Zhu and other co-conspirators manufactured, imported, sold, and distributed hundreds of thousands of COVID-19 test kits in the United States and China. They also manufactured and distributed test kits for HIV, pregnancy, clinical urinalysis, and other medical conditions.
Prosecutors accused Zhu and his co-conspirators of operating through the companies, Universal Meditech Incorporated (UMI) and Prestige Biotech Incorporated (PBI), which were based in Fresno and Reedley. The companies had no authorization to manufacture and distribute the test kits.
“When questioned by FDA officials, Zhu made false statements about his identity, his ownership and control of UMI and PBI, and the activities of UMI and PBI,” the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.
Zhu was indicted in November 2023, according to prosecutors. In August 2024, prosecutors said Zhu faced additional charges of conspiracy and wire fraud.
Prosecutors accused Zhu and a co-conspirator of misrepresenting to buyers that UMI and PBI could make up to 100,000 COVID-19 test kits per week in the United States. Zhu and his co-conspirator also lied to buyers that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the FDA approved the test kits.
Zhu and his co-conspirator made over $1.7 million through the scheme, according to prosecutors. Zhu remains in custody pending his federal trial in April.
State lawmakers call for more oversight of biolabs
The investigation into the California biolaboratory prompted three state lawmakers to introduce the “Preventing Illegal Laboratories and Protecting Public Health Act” to tighten oversight over highly pathogenic agents and high-containment laboratories. A congressional committee later linked the California biolaboratory to the Chinese Communist Party.
A report released in November 2023 by the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party accused Zhu of previously being a “top official at a PRC-state-controlled company” with ties to “military-civil fusion entities.”
The report said the California biolaboratory had received “millions of dollars in unexplained payments from PRC banks” during its operations. The report also found that Zhu was a “wanted fugitive from Canada” and had previously stolen millions of dollars of intellectual property from U.S. companies.
Other findings from the report included confirmation that the biolaboratory had contained thousands of samples of potential pathogens, such as HIV, malaria, tuberculosis, and COVID. The report added that the biolaboratory contained nearly 1,000 genetically engineered mice that lab workers said were designed “to catch and carry the COVID-19 virus.”
Following the discovery of the potential biolaboratory in Las Vegas, Republican Rep. Kevin Kiley called on Congress to move the bill forward.
“This can’t keep happening,” Kiley said in a statement. “The federal government must do more to stop illegal labs from operating in our communities. This bipartisan bill closes loopholes that allow dangerous facilities like these to operate under the radar.”
Contributing: Saleen Martin, USA TODAY
Six of the top-polling candidates in California’s race for governor faced off at a debate in San Francisco Wednesday night.
This marked the first debate since former East Bay Congressman Eric Swalwell dropped out of the race for governor and resigned from his seat. Despite Swalwell’s exit as well as the departure of Betty Yee from the race, no clear Democratic frontrunner has emerged.
The debate was hosted by Nexstar/KRON in San Francisco.
The candidates at this debate included four Democrats: former Congresswoman Katie Porter, former California State Attorney General Xavier Beccera, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan, and billionaire philanthropist Tom Steyer. The two Republicans at this debate included former Fox News commentator Steve Hilton and Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco.
All candidates are trying to make an impression ahead of the June 2 primary. Ballots will be mailed out to California voters in early May.
Political analyst Larry Gerston examines the first California governor’s race debate since Eric Swalwell dropped out, hosted by Nexstar/KRON in San Francisco.
California
Federal appeals court blocks California law requiring federal agents to wear identification
LOS ANGELES — An appeals court has blocked a California law passed in 2025 requiring federal immigration agents to wear a badge or some form of identification.
The Trump administration filed a lawsuit in November challenging the law, arguing that it would threaten the safety of officers who are facing harassment, doxing, and violence and that it violated the constitution because the state is directly regulating the federal government.
A three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals issued an injunction pending appeal Wednesday. It had already granted a temporary administrative injunction to block the implementation of the law.
At a hearing March 3, Justice Department lawyers argued that the California law sought to regulate the federal government, violating the Supremacy Clause of the Constitution.
The appeals court agreed unanimously, saying the law “attempts to directly regulate the United States in its performance of governmental functions,” in an opinion written by Judge Mark J. Bennett. The panel was composed of two Trump appointees, Bennett and Daniel P. Collins, and Obama appointee Jacqueline H. Nguyen.
California lawyers argued that the law applied equally to all law enforcement officers without discriminating against the U.S. government, and that states could apply “generally applicable” laws federal agents. They also argued that the law was important to address public safety concerns.
People are more likely to attack officers in self-defense if there’s no visible identification letting the public know they are law enforcement, California lawyers said in a brief opposing the injunction.
“This confusion has resulted in federal law enforcement officials being mistaken for criminals and vice versa, creating serious risk of harm to peace officers and members of the public,” they wrote.
The appeals court judges said they did not consider the public safety factors because the federal government has demonstrate its constitutional rights would be violated by the legislation, and “all citizens have a stake in upholding the Constitution,” it ruled, quoting previous case law.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli called it a “huge legal victory” in a post on X.
The California Attorney General’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The initial lawsuit also addressed another California measure signed into law last year that would have banned most law enforcement officers from wearing masks, neck gaiters, and other facial coverings. It was blocked by a federal judge in February.
The legislation did not apply to state law enforcement and made exceptions for undercover agents, protective equipment like N95 respirators or tactical gear, and other situations where not wearing a mask would jeopardize the operation.
California
California Islamic calligraphy artist preserves ancient tradition during Arab American Heritage Month
As Arab American Heritage Month is celebrated, one Northern California artist is keeping the centuries-old tradition of Islamic calligraphy alive, one carefully measured stroke at a time.
Sehar Shahzad is a student calligrapher. Before starting any project, Shahzad said “one of the first things that calligraphers learn is how to cut their pens.”
Her tools must be in pristine condition.
“Your instruments are just as important as anything else in this art,” she said.
Shahzad said that as a young girl growing up in Toronto, she took up Islamic calligraphy while reflecting on her religion.
“It’s not like I’d never seen it before, but it was my first time kind of trying it,” she said. “And there’s no other way to say it except that I just fell in love with it.”
Now married with three children, Islamic calligraphy is very much part of her life.
“I remember thinking that this isn’t something that I just want to learn for fun,” she said. “I really want to be able to master it.”
Shahzad said that every angle and curve follows strict geometric rules and is measured with dots.
“For example, this letter here was just a little bit too long, so we use these nuqtas to help us guide and understand how long that letter should be,” she said.
Like the Arabic language, Islamic calligraphy is read from right to left. Its bold simplicity requires precision and a deep understanding of proportion.
“When you’re creating a composition, it’s not only about the letter itself,” Shahzad said. “It’s about composition as a whole and making sure that everything balances together.”
Even though she’s still mastering her form, Shahzad’s work is featured in the prayer room of a Muslim cemetery in Napa and in the domes of mosques in San Jose, Hayward, and San Francisco.
Still, she considers her work on paper the most special.
“A form of meditation, a form of worship, requires focus, requires discipline, really brings me to a different space,” Shahzad said. “And I think that’s what I love most.”
Proving that in this fast-paced world, this millennia-long tradition is far from disappearing.
Shahzad’s work will be featured at the upcoming Light Upon Light art exhibit at the Tarbiya Institute in Roseville from April 24-26.
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