Owner of California biolab that fueled bio-weapons rumors charged with mislabeling, lacking permits

FRESNO, Calif. (AP) — The Chinese owner of an unauthorized California lab that fueled conspiracy theories about COVID-19 and bio-weapons was arrested on charges of manufacturing and distributing misbranded medical tests and making false statements. Federal prosecutors say 62-year-old Jia Bei Zhu was arrested Thursday after an investigation by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. The investigation stemmed from the discovery of medical test kits being manufactured in a warehouse in the Central Valley city of Reedley last December. A city code enforcement officer found dozens of refrigerators and freezers, vials of blood and jars of urine, and about 1,000 white lab mice in crowded, soiled containers. An attorney for one of Zhu’s companies had no immediate comment on the allegations.