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LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Several individuals reportedly fell ill due to an alleged bio lab operating from a residence in Las Vegas, which was also being utilized as an Airbnb. This revelation comes from documents accessed by the 8 News Now Investigators at Nexstar’s KLAS on Tuesday.
On January 31, officers from the Metro police and the FBI conducted a search of the home located in Sunrise Manor. During their investigation, they discovered what appeared to be a “possible biological laboratory,” which included refrigerators containing vials filled with unknown liquids, as stated by the police.
According to state court records, 55-year-old Ori Solomon is facing a felony charge related to the disposal or discharge of hazardous waste, as initially reported by the 8 News Now Investigators. Additionally, on Monday night, federal prosecutors filed documents to charge Solomon with a firearms-related offense.
County records link an LLC associated with the property to a company involved in an ongoing federal case in California. This connection, first reported by the 8 News Now Investigators on Sunday, highlights another biological laboratory under scrutiny.
In the California case, federal prosecutors allege that David He, a Chinese national with possible connections to the Chinese Communist Party, is facing charges for the production and distribution of misbranded medical devices at a facility in Reedley, California.
In early January, the FBI received a tip about lab equipment and medical waste at the Las Vegas home consistent with the bio lab in California, documents said. The tipster said Solomon contacted a house cleaner to clean the home, which is also a short-term rental.
During a news conference on Monday, Metro police and the FBI shared video from the garage, showing officers seizing vials of liquid and rummaging through refrigerators.
Another person inside the home reported the garage was always locked, documents said. A person also reported to investigators that the garage contained three refrigerators and that the room smelled “like a hospital – not like a clean hospital but more of a foul, stale, stagnant air smell.”
Several days after entering the garage, two people became “deathly ill,” and they “could not get out of bed,” documents said. A tipster also told police the house contained “many dead crickets” and several people had gotten sick.
On Jan. 9, the FBI contacted a person at the Southern Nevada Health District about a facility in Las Vegas “where medical equipment was allegedly stored but was never found,” documents said. The investigation led SNHD to find a possible connection between the equipment and the California bio lab.
He’s wife, Zhaoyan Wang, left the United States for China amid the federal prosecution of her husband, documents said. However, police suspect Wang has access to cameras monitoring the Las Vegas home.
He has remained in federal custody since his arrest. In January, he contacted Solomon 467 times and his wife 3,524 times. According to investigators, He instructed Solomon to manage his properties and transfer money to him while awaiting trial.
In the California case, investigators located “pathogen-labeled containers” with labels such as “dengue fever,” “HIV,” and “malaria” along with 1,000 mice, according to a federal report.
Police detained Solomon after the Las Vegas raid, charging him with violating hazardous waste laws. The charge is connected to the improper storage and disposal of hydrochloric acid.
Solomon, who prosecutors said was in the United States on a non-immigrant visa, “knowingly possessed” several firearms, including rifles and handguns, documents said. Solomon’s immigration status prevents him from owning any firearm.
State and county records identify Solomon’s last name as Solomon, while federal prosecutors also refer to him as “Solamon.”
Solomon, whose records indicate he has lived in Clark County for decades, remained detained as of Tuesday evening. He made a brief appearance in federal court on Tuesday, where a judge delayed his initial proceedings until Friday.
Samples from the Las Vegas home were undergoing testing.
More charges against Solomon are likely. It was unclear on Tuesday if the property served as an actual Airbnb or a generic short-term rental. Neither an attorney for He nor a representative for Airbnb returned a request for comment.