{"id":304473,"date":"2026-05-07T16:10:33","date_gmt":"2026-05-07T16:10:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/304473\/"},"modified":"2026-05-07T16:10:33","modified_gmt":"2026-05-07T16:10:33","slug":"universal-meditech-owner-guilty-in-phony-covid-test-scheme","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/304473\/","title":{"rendered":"Universal Meditech owner guilty in phony COVID test scheme"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/p>\n

AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Read our AI Policy.<\/a><\/p>\n

Jia Bei Zhu was convicted on 12 counts for selling $4 million in fake COVID tests.Inspectors discovered the Reedley lab’s pathogen-filled freezers during a December 2022 inspection.Prosecutors said Zhu and partners imported faulty tests and sold them as if FDA-authorized.<\/p>\n

The owner of a Fresno-based biotech company was found guilty of fraudulently selling $4 million worth of unauthorized COVID tests in the United States and lying to federal investigators.<\/p>\n

Jia Bei Zhu, 64, of China, was convicted after a two-week trial in U.S. District Court in Sacramento.<\/p>\n

The jury found him guilty of 12 counts, including one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, eight counts of substantive wire fraud, two counts of distributing adulterated and misbranded medical devices, and one count of making a false statement to the FDA.<\/p>\n

Zhu faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for conspiracy and the wire fraud charges; three years for distribution of adulterated and misbranded medical devices and five years for making false statements. He will be sentenced on Aug. 24 before U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd.<\/p>\n

Zhu\u2019s company, Universal Meditech Inc., came under suspicion from federal and state health officials after its laboratory in Reedley was inspected by city code inspectors in December 2022.<\/p>\n

Inspectors were stunned to discover the warehouse contained dozens of freezers and refrigerators full of various bacterial, viral and parasitic agents including COVID-19, chlamydia, E. coli, streptococcus, Hepatitis B and C, human herpes, HIV (the virus that causes AIDS), rubella and malaria.<\/p>\n

Federal investigators also determined that the company made and distributed COVID-19 rapid tests without the required FDA authorization.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis verdict holds the defendant accountable for actions that exploited a public health crisis for his own gain. He flouted the lawful authority of the FDA and deliberately deceived the public by repackaging low-quality, foreign-made test kits at a time when accuracy and reliability were critical,\u201d said U.S. Attorney Eric Grant. \u201cThis conduct, tied to the unlawful operations uncovered at the Reedley laboratory, put lives at risk. Our office remains committed to prosecuting those who endanger the public through fraud, especially in matters affecting the health and safety of our communities.\u201d<\/p>\n

During Zhu\u2019s trial, prosecutors revealed Zhu and his partner Zhaoyan Wang hired inexperienced employees who would not ask any questions.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe employees were cellphone salespeople, supermarket workers, childcare workers, and stay-at-home parents before starting at UMI. Some of the employees were hired through the Fresno County Economic Development Corporation, which is a public organization that helps find jobs for unskilled workers and provides significant subsidies to employers that hire them,\u201d according to a news release from the U.S. Attorney\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n

Wang, who is also charged in the case, fled the United States shortly before Zhu\u2019s arrest and remains a fugitive in China.<\/p>\n

Federal investigators also accused Zhu, Wang and others at UMI, of importing faulty COVID tests from China and then selling them to U.S. under the false belief the tests were authorized by the FDA, made in the USA, were made in connection with a certified medical lab, and the tests worked.<\/p>\n

Several former employees testified that Zhu instructed them to make false representations to customers. The employees explained that they knew what they were doing was wrong but went through with it because they did not want to lose their jobs. They also explained that they feared Zhu would physically hurt them if they defied his orders, according to the news release.<\/p>\n

Fresno County officials applauded the jury\u2019s verdict, adding that since the discovery of Zhu\u2019s illegal laboratory the County has expended significant hours of staff time to support the City of Reedley and multiple partner agencies in containment and mitigation efforts.<\/p>\n

In addition, the County created its own ordinance to conduct annual inspections of privately funded labs, as an interim safeguard until stronger federal legislation is enacted.<\/p>\n

Chairman Garry Bredefeld said the jury\u2019s verdict sends a clear message: those who exploit a public health crisis will be held accountable.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe people of Fresno County deserve honesty, transparency, and accountability, particularly when it comes to their health and safety,\u201d Bredefeld said in a statement.<\/p>\n

This story was originally published May 6, 2026 at 12:34 PM.<\/p>\n

Related Stories from Fresno Bee<\/p>\n


\n \"Profile
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Robert Rodriguez<\/a><\/p>\n

The Fresno Bee<\/p>\n

A Valley native, Robert has worked at The Fresno Bee since 1994, covering various topics including education, business, courts and agriculture.\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom. Read our AI Policy. Jia Bei Zhu was convicted on 12 counts…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":304474,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[112,114,113],"class_list":["post-304473","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fresno","tag-fresno","tag-fresno-headlines","tag-fresno-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/304473","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=304473"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/304473\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/304474"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=304473"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=304473"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=304473"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}