1,000 samples sent for testing after possible biological lab found inside Las Vegas home: FBI
The potential biological materials were
in a locked garage, authorities said.
February 2, 2026
Local and federal investigators in Las Vegas are actively working to determine what substances were found inside a home described as a possible biological lab, with over 1,000 samples sent for testing, authorities said.
Officials searched the scene on Saturday morning, with investigators saying they are currently uncertain exactly what was found.
According to sources, the investigation began as a code‑violation call. When authorities began to suspect that illegal medical‑type biological research materials might be stored at the property, the Joint Terrorism Task Force took over the investigation.
The "potential biological and hazardous materials" were primarily located in a locked garage, Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department Sheriff Kevin McMahill said during a press briefing on Monday.
In the garage, investigators found multiple refrigerators with vials of unknown liquids, unknown liquids in gallon-size containers, a centrifuge and other laboratory equipment, authorities said.
In an open refrigerator and freezer, investigators saw a "significant volume of material," including vials and storage containers "with liquids of different colors and compositions," McMahill said.
"The scene presented a high level of complexity with materials that have not yet been identified and still require careful assessment," McMahill said.
More than 1,000 samples were collected, according to Chris Delzotto, the special agent in charge of the FBI's Las Vegas office.
The evidence has since been transported to an FBI lab for testing, according to the sheriff. Authorities did not provide details on what kinds of tests were underway.
"We recognize that the public is seeking clarity. What were they testing for? What possibilities are being considered? However, as the sheriff mentioned in cases like this, our process relies on being slow and methodical, from the collection of evidence to the testing of the samples," Delzotto said.
The person arrested on Saturday -- identified as Ori Solomon, 55 -- is believed to be the property manager at the location, according to McMahill.
Solomon has been charged with felony disposal/ discharge of hazardous waste in an unauthorized manner and remains in custody, according to court records.
Three people who rented a room from the property owner were safely removed from the residence and are not involved in the investigation at this time, McMahill said.
The owner of the property was arrested and charged in 2023 in connection with an investigation into an illegal bio lab in Reedley, California, authorities said. The owner, a Chinese national, remains in federal custody and has pleaded not guilty.
The case led to a congressional investigation that found the illegal bio lab had allegedly been receiving money from Chinese banks and was housing thousands of samples of potential pathogens labeled as being HIV, malaria, TB, COVID-19 and even Ebola.
The items found in the Las Vegas residence "were consistent in appearance with the items found and described in the Reedley, California, lab investigation," McMahill said Monday.
Over 1,000 materials seized in illegal Las Vegas bio lab linked to similar case in California
The Reedley lab was discovered in December of 2022, when a code inspector came upon a suspicious warehouse. Inside, she found many Chinese nationals "wearing white lab coats, glasses, masks, and latex gloves," along with "thousands of vials of biological substances" and 1,000 mice. It was later learned these were "transgenic" mice "genetically engineered to catch and carry the COVID-19 virus." A further inspection found "blood, tissue and other bodily fluid samples and serums" along with thousands of vials of "suspected biological material." Some of the vials were labeled with the names of infectious agents, while others were labeled in a "code" that was never deciphered. At first, the CDC refused to investigate, and even hung-up on local officials who asked for help. After Rep. Costa got involved, the CDC did an inspection and found "at least 20 potentially infectious agents, including HIV, Tuberculosis, and the deadliest known form of Malaria." Yet the CDC did not bother to test any samples, even those with unknown contents, making it "impossible for the Select Committee to fully assess the potential risks that this specific facility posed to the community." The Select Committee report calls this "baffling." Later, local officials discovered a refrigerator in the lab labeled “Ebola.” While the supposed purpose of the lab was to sell test kits, in fact all the company did was buy counterfeit kits from China and re-sell them in the United States. Thus, there was a "lack of apparent legitimate (or even profit-motivated criminal) motive in the operation of the illegal facility." Meanwhile, Jesse Zhu, its operator, was "receiving unexplained payments via wire transfer" from Chinese banks. The report concluded that "no one knows whether there are other unknown biolabs because there is no monitoring system in place." Now we know that there was at least one other, but we still don't know how many more. That is why it is critical for Congress to pass my bipartisan legislation, authored with Rep. Costa and Rep. Valadao, to find these labs and shut them all down.
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