The Hill
What to know about suspected biolab in Las Vegas
by Ashleigh Fields - 02/04/26 2:48 PM ET
Law enforcement is evaluating the impact of a suspected biolab at a Las Vegas residence.
SWAT officers from the Las Vegas Police Department seized “refrigerators with vials containing unknown liquids” from a home linked to a man who was convicted of operating an illegal biolab in California.
Several individuals have become “deathly ill” as a result of their stay at the property, which also operated as an Airbnb.
Here’s what to know about the suspected laboratory and its impact on the local community.
Suspect charged, in custody
Police have charged Ori Solomon, 55, with a felony charge of disposing or discharging hazardous waste, according to state court records.
He was listed as the property manager at the home where the alleged bio lab was located.
Solomon is currently residing in the U.S. on a temporary work visa that “precludes him from owning or possessing a firearm,” according to a complaint reviewed by ABC.
Solomon was detained after the Las Vegas raid for the improper storage and disposal of hydrochloric acid.
Two people became “deathly ill” after entering the garage at the residence to the point where they “could not get out of bed” according to court documents reviewed by Nexstar affiliate KLAS. Police received several reports about the garage, with one person detailing that there were three refrigerators in the car entry port.
Another reported that the room smelled “like a hospital – not like a clean hospital but more of a foul, stale, stagnant air smell.”
One person told police that there were “many dead crickets” throughout the house, noting that several people had gotten sick.
On Monday, police and the FBI shared video from the garage, showing officers confiscating vials of liquid in addition to laboratory equipment and gallon size substances stored in the area.
The FBI has sent liquid to a lab for extensive testing.
Ties to China
Investigators have linked the Las Vegas home suspected of being a biolab to a previously convicted Chinese national named Jia Bei Zhu.
Zhu was arrested in 2023 for failing to obtain the proper permits to manufacture tests for COVID-19, pregnancy and HIV, and mislabeling some of the kits for a biolab in Reedley, Calif., according to The Associated Press.
Investigators also located “pathogen-labeled containers” with labels in English and Mandarin that read “dengue fever,” “HIV” and “malaria,” along with 1,000 mice, according to a federal report from the Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party.
“He is not involved in any kind of a biolab being conducted in a home in Las Vegas,” Zhu’s attorney, Anthony Capozzi, told the AP.
“What went on in that residence we are unaware of,” he added.
However, his name is listed as the registered agent of the Las Vegas-based company that owns the property where SWAT officers executed a search warrant of the alleged biolab, according to KLAS. The LLC purchased the home in 2022.
Records show Zhu contacted Solomon 467 times in January. According to investigators, He instructed Solomon to manage his properties and transfer money to him while awaiting trial.
He also called his wife 3,524 times, who fled the country amid his legal troubles, said authorities, who say they believe she had access to cameras monitoring the Las Vegas home.
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