Man accused of running illegal lab in Reedley faces additional charges

REEDLEY, Calif. (KFSN) – The Chinese national accused in connection with the illegal biolab in Reedley now faces further charges.

Jai Bei Zhu, also known as David He, will now face conspiracy and wire fraud charges following an indictment by a federal grand jury.

He had previously been charged with distributing mislabeled COVID-19 test kits and making false statements to authorities about his identity and involvement in the biolabs.

The indictment also charges Zhu's business partners with making more than $1.7 million through fraudulent activities.

He pleaded not guilty to running the laboratory, which contained unauthorized samples of bodily fluids, infectious disease samples, medical tests and nearly 1,000 mice.

He now has to appear in court again next month, while his partner is currently out of custody.

Reedley Code Enforcement told Action News they are grateful that the individuals involved are being held accountable.