An investigation into the lab's origins is underway. (Unsplash/Representative pic)
Officials in the United States have uncovered an illegal medical lab inside a California warehouse filled with infectious agents, hundreds of dead mice and other hazardous materials. According to The Independent, the lab, run by Prestige BioTech, a Nevada-based company not registered in California, was working with at least 20 dangerous viruses, bacteria, and parasites, including COVID-19, E. Coli, malaria, HIV, hepatitis, and herpes.
An investigation into the lab began in March when a city code enforcement officer spotted a garden hose attached to the back wall of the facility. Officials searched the site and discovered the lab, the outlet reported. As they inspected the site, they were shocked by what they saw.
The Reedley City Manager, Nicole Zieba, said that she'd never experienced such a discovery in more than two decades of civil service. "This is an unusual situation. I've been in government for 25 years. I've never seen anything like this," Ms Zieba stated.
According to New York Post, the lab contained approximately 30 refrigerators and freezers, though some had ceased to function by the time they were discovered. Incubators and medical testing devices were also discovered at the lab, alongside the disease samples and nearly 1,000 bioengineered mice. Investigators also found a room in the facility where pregnancy tests were manufactured.
Wang Zhaolin, a representative of the company operating the lab, told investigators that the mice inside the warehouse had been genetically engineered to catch and spread the COVID-19 virus.
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"Certain rooms of the warehouse were found to contain several vessels of liquid and various apparatus," NBC News reported. "Fresno County Public Health staff also observed blood, tissue and other bodily fluid samples and serums; and thousands of vials of unlabeled fluids and suspected biological material," the report added.
Around 800 of the mice found inside the warehouse were euthanized by officials, per NBC. Approximately 175 mice were already dead when they were discovered. Joe Prado, the Fresno County Department of Public Health, said the site was also filled with bottles of "unknown chemicals".
All of the biohazards present in the lab have been destroyed as of 7 July, according to the reports. An investigation into the lab's origins is underway.