No, patriots, there is not an Israeli Bioterrorist on the loose in Vegas

Do you care about biolabs run by Chinese illegal immigrants?

On Thursday, J.J. Sefton included in his Morning Report this piece by Debra Heine: Sen. Sheehy Calls for IG Investigation of Montana Research Lab After Lapses Involving Deadly Viruses:

Senator Tim Sheehy (R-Mont.) is demanding a government review of two incidents in the past year involving the “theft, loss, or release” of a deadly pathogen” at a National Institutes of Health (NIH) research facility in Hamilton, Montana.

Rocky Mountain Laboratories (RML), an NIH lab, “conducts studies on some of the world’s most dangerous diseases, meaning even small lapses could put Montana communities at risk,” Sheehy said in a press release, Tuesday.

Even more concerning are reports that a senior RML scientist allegedly attempted to smuggle dozens of vials of VHF [viral hemorrhagic fever] into the United States from Africa in January and lied to customs officials about their contents.

"The authorities" don't seem to have their act together here. I'm in favor of looking for ways to decrease the size of government, but here it seems that agents of the government were endangering Americans.

BUT WHAT IF GOVERNMENT OVERSIGHT GETS EVEN STUPIDER?

The Montana cases above apparently involved personnel at a licensed NIH lab. What if there are unknown biolabs running in the country, perhaps even by hostile illegal immigrants from, say, China?

Well, we have watched that happen, too. "The authorities" may be starting to pay attention in this case. In February, Ace posted about a case that had familiar overtones: A Covert Chinese Lab Is Operating in Las Vegas and "Sickening" Nearby Americans

RedState's Jen Van Laar:

Several people who stayed at the Las Vegas home apparently doubling as an illegal Chinese biolab became sick after their visit, with two people becoming "deathly ill" a few days after entering the home's garage, according to documents reviewed by Las Vegas journalist David Charns.

And that's just the beginning of today's updates. We've also learned more about how investigators believe the equipment ended up at that home, the relationship between the property manager, Ori Solomon, and the Chinese scientist charged with running the lab, Jia Bei Zhu.

This is where the conspiracy theorists went into high gear, ignoring everything but headlines (and ignoring the nationality of the Chinese guy who owns the "lab") in order to post stupid rhetoric like, "Charges against Israeli biolab terrorist Ori Solomon were dropped by Israeli-born, Trump-appointed prosecutor Sigal Chattah. Her appointment as prosecutor was ruled illegal last year, but Trump ignored it."

The Israeli guy (whose visa was earlier reportedly due to expire this month) faced firearms charges and on June 4 will go to court on charges concerning disposal of hazardous materials. But he has not been charged with being a "biolab terrorist". The firearms charges have been dropped. The hazardous waste charges are state charges, much to the chagrin of the Jew-haters.

Ace noted the proximity of the "biolab" to an Air Force base. The Chinese guy who set up shop in Fresno, then in Reedley, may have had nearby military bases in mind there as well.

Then again, before turning his attention to human diseases, the Chinese "scientist" in charge of these labs reportedly wanted to take down the American dairy industry (even if he failed to do it from Canada). Fresno would be a good place to attack American dairies, too. You may want to double-check some of the information in this reporting, which suggests that the guy now in prison is really a danger to the USA. I think I believe a lot of it.

Back in the summer of 2023, we (though not necessarily most of the national press) were focused on what the Chinese guy above had been doing in Fresno and Reedley, in California. As in this post: Playing Kick the Can: The Chinese Biotech Lab in Reedley

Back then, local media and local officials were trying to get state and federal officials to pay some real attention to the alarming "lab" found in a warehouse in Reedley because a code enforcement officer saw a garden hose sticking out of the side of a warehouse. There had been no permits or notifications to the local government.

This scene doesn't seem to go very well with the idea of a Chinese biolab with 20 pathogens and unlabeled blood, tissue and serum containers, plus genetically engineered Covid-19 mice which were just thrown in household trash when they died.

The lab that was reportedly taken over by the lab that moved to Reedley (but who knows who owns it?) had an electrical fire in Fresno. Do you think that a former wholesale furniture warehouse in Reedley had adequate electrical fixtures for (reportedly) 37 freezers? They never got business or building permits.

Can you imagine a fire spreading pathogens into the community?

Last week, I wondered why it had taken so long for news about the Chinese lab to come out. The Mid Valley Times reports that "City Manager Nicole Zieba defends decision to not disclose the discovery of a an illegal lab in Reedley right away; situation stirs up a battle of 'protocol' versus 'public's right to know' "

When asked does not the public have the right to know what is happening in its backyard, particularly when that backyard is full of infectious agents, Zieba said that once investigators determined the public was not at any risk, it was paramount that nothing derail the investigations; even if that meant incurring the public's disdain.

"These investigations are still ongoing and are complex and comprehensive," Zieba said. "I believe the public is astute enough to understand that the more information that gets out to the public, the more the bad guys also know what we know. I think the public recognizes that."

She may have a point there. It is still difficult to determine who owns the lab, for example. The $360,000 tax credit Newsom gave to the bankrupt lab they took over was apparently not rescinded until June (even though the company had reportedly not met the milestones for the tax credit).

Zieba said she is upset that politicians are trying to make a name for themselves by criticizing the handling of the investigation. The bigger problem is the federal government and the fact there are no proscriptions preventing companies from doing what Prestige did.

Until Reedley.

"This company was already a bad player," said Zieba. "They got kicked out of Canada. They got kicked out of Texas. They go to California, they get kicked out of Fresno. They get kicked out of Tulare, they go back to Fresno. Get kicked out of Fresno and end up in Reedley."

Zieba continued, "We're the little David city that took down Goliath with a garden hose. We dismantled an entity that everyone else kicked down the road to someone else's town. I don't kick cans down the road."

Plus, she was threatened by the feds.

The national press now has a second chance at this story. The Los Angeles Times actually released a decent piece based on the experiences of the code enforcement officer in Reedley, Jesalyn Harper, tying that story to the Las Vegas story.

"She uncovered a terrifying lab hidden in California, with alleged ties to China"

This rather lengthy (by today's standards) piece is mostly about the Reedley lab and what has been learned about the Chinese guy who ran it since the lab was discovered. Some of the details are very disturbing. Like this:

While living in China in the early 2000s, Zhu served as the vice chairman of the state-controlled enterprise, Henan Pioneer Aide Biological Engineering Co., and board chairman and general manager of Aide Modern Cattle Industry China Co., which was the primary shareholder of 11 cattle companies in China, according to the congressional report.

Zhu then moved to Canada and started doing business there, focusing on the cattle industry. In 2016, one of his businesses was ordered by a Canadian court to pay $330 million for allegedly stealing cattle-related technology from a U.S.-based company. It is not clear whether the business ever paid the judgment.

Amid the litigation, Canadian court records show, Zhu emailed a colleague: “The law is strong, but the outlaws are 10 times stronger.”

There are some details and photos from the Las Vegas raid included with the piece, too. I guess they help provide some more recent context for the article.

For two years Harper had warned federal agencies that there could be additional materials at the home in Las Vegas based on details she learned during the investigation in Reedley.

“I couldn’t get them to move on it,” she said. “The attitude really has been, well, we caught the guy. We did our part.”

A new search warrant was executed on the Reedley building after the Las Vegas raid.

And "The Authorities" have a second chance to ACTUALLY TEST samples found in one of these labs! And maybe keep that Chinese guy in prison for a while.

They broke out the robot dog and the drones this time. No use wasting that expensive investigation. The illegal immigrant they already have in prison was getting money and consideration from Gavin Newsom, the Chinese government and American customers. And there's so much we still don't know about him.

Weekend

The Week In Pictures: Remember the Alamo Edition

There was plenty of news this week, but meme creators were mostly focused on lesser stories, like Jill Biden’s recollection of her husband’s disastrous debate performance, which came as a surprise to everyone who hadn’t been paying attention for the previous four years. Good times! But what inspired memesters more than anything else was the candidacy of James Talarico, Democratic candidate for the Senate in Texas. Can a non-binary vegan be elected to the Senate from Texas? One certainly hopes not.

Music

Don't sell your soul.

"Sold My Soul" is a dark, soulful journey down the Mississippi where deals are made in the shadows and the blues tells the truth. With gritty vocals, raw guitar, and haunting riverboat vibes, this track captures the spirit of a bluesman who traded everything for the music.… pic.twitter.com/DoMPAiivPm

— 🎼 sedrul (@sedrul0 May 28, 2026

Hope you have something nice planned for this weekend.

This is the Thread before the Gardening Thread.

Last week's thread, Seen some transcendent fortitude and steadfastness lately? Where?

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