US police forces busted a suspected Chinese-linked biolab found inside a Las Vegas home.
Investigations are underway after US SWAT teams and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) swooped in on the home on Saturday.
They found refrigerators and vials with unknown substances inside a locked garage.
A local sheriff says the materials could be biological or hazardous and have been transferred to a FBI lab for testing.
Investigators say there is no threat to the public.
The property manager of the home has been taken into custody.
The owner of the home, Zhu Jiabei, is already in federal custody.
Zhu was arrested after officials discovered an illegal biolab he operated in a home in California.
Authorities discovered a thousand mice whose DNA has been engineered to catch and carry the COVID-19 virus.
Officials also uncovered at least 20 potentially infectious agents, including HIV, tuberculosis, and the deadliest known form of malaria.
Zhu has been charged with making misbranded medical devices.
His attorney says he has no involvement in any alleged biolab tied to the Las Vegas investigation.
Zhu is also wanted in Canada for stealing millions of dollars worth of intellectual property from U.S. companies.
He is scheduled for trial in April in the California case.
The property’s former cleaning employee says multiple people who spent time inside the house fell ill, according to newly released court documents.
Police say the cleaner reported seeing lab cell equipment, chemical containers, and refrigerators inside a locked garage, along with a strong hospital-like odour.
She told investigators that she and a handyman became “deathly ill.”
She said days after entering the space, they were suffering breathing problems, fatigue, and muscle aches.
The cleaner also said several guests and residents got sick, including one person hospitalised with severe respiratory issues.
