Jia Bei Zhu Convicted in $4 Million Covid Tests Fraud
A federal jury convicted Jia Bei Zhu after a two-week trial for selling more than a million faulty covid tests nationwide through Universal Meditech Inc. Prosecutors said the 64-year-old also lied to the FDA about his identity and role with the company.
The verdict leaves Zhu facing convictions on conspiracy to commit wire fraud, eight counts of substantive wire fraud, two counts of distributing adulterated and misbranded medical devices, and one false statement count. The tests were sold for nearly $4 million and were marketed as FDA-authorized.
Universal Meditech and Fresno
Employees testified that Zhu told them to make false representations to customers, and that they feared he would physically hurt them if they defied his orders. Victims testified that the kits they received were missing basic parts and could not detect COVID.
The case first surfaced in 2022 after a victim sued Universal Meditech and a court-ordered inspection of the Fresno facility found the company lacked the ability to manufacture COVID tests. Inspectors described the site as an unsanitary warehouse below established quality standards for facilities that house medical devices.
Reedley Laboratory Findings
Investigators found a vivarium that was not sealed off from the rest of the facility and multiple refrigerators with pathogens and toxins stored in juice, soda and other inappropriate containers. The FDA, CDC and FBI later determined that those rooms were part of a failed effort by Universal Meditech to manufacture COVID tests at the Fresno facility.
Prosecutors said Zhu moved the company from Fresno to Reedley and changed its name to Prestige Biotech Inc. The case was tied to unlawful operations uncovered at the Reedley laboratory, bringing the company’s later move into the same criminal record that led to the verdict.
May 2023 FDA Meeting
Zhu met with FDA and CDC investigators in May 2023 and falsely claimed something during that meeting. After the verdict, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant said, “This 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,”
FDA Office of Criminal Investigations special agent in charge Robert Iwanicki said, “The defendant’s scheme to distribute medical devices that were misbranded and falsely represented as FDA-approved undermined public health during a critical time,” He also said, “The FDA works closely with our law enforcement partners to investigate violations of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, which is designed to ensure, among other things, that medical devices are safe and effective.”
The jury’s verdict closes the trial phase of the case against Zhu, while the false claim he made to federal investigators in May 2023 and the role of Prestige Biotech in the Reedley-linked operation remain part of the record that prosecutors used to secure the convictions.
