{"id":1472475,"date":"2022-05-12T07:59:44","date_gmt":"2022-05-12T11:59:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1472475"},"modified":"2022-05-12T07:59:58","modified_gmt":"2022-05-12T11:59:58","slug":"u-s-scientist-warned-china-of-wuhan-lab-probes-went-on-to-take-job-at-chinese-university","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/u-s-scientist-warned-china-of-wuhan-lab-probes-went-on-to-take-job-at-chinese-university\/","title":{"rendered":"U.S. Scientist Warned China of Wuhan Lab Probes, Went on to Take Job at Chinese University"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">32<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fu-s-scientist-warned-china-of-wuhan-lab-probes-went-on-to-take-job-at-chinese-university%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1472475&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><ul>\n<li><strong>Dr. James W. Le Duc, head of the Galveston National Laboratory, warned Chinese researchers about potential congressional investigations in April 2020, according to emails obtained by Judicial Watch.<\/strong><\/li>\n<li> <strong>Le Duc also sent Shi Zhengli, a scientist at the Wuhan Institute of Virology, a \u201cdraft summary\u201d he intended to submit to the University of Texas and potential congressional committees<\/strong><strong>, <\/strong><strong>encouraging Shi to edit the document.<\/strong> <\/li>\n<li><strong>Roughly a year after his warnings, Le Duc accepted a position on the \u201cBiosafety Advisory Committee\u201d at China\u2019s Westlake University, emails show.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The head of a U.S. national laboratory in Texas accepted a position at a Chinese university roughly one year after warning Chinese scientists about potential congressional investigations into COVID-19\u2019s origins, according to emails obtained by Judicial Watch.<\/p>\n<p>In an April 2020 email chain, <a href=\"https:\/\/microbiology.utmb.edu\/faculty\/james-leduc-phd?utm_source=deployer&#038;utm_medium=email&#038;utm_campaign=press+release\">Dr. James W. Le Duc<\/a>, director of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.utmb.edu\/gnl\/home?utm_source=deployer&#038;utm_medium=email&#038;utm_campaign=press+release\">Galveston National Laboratory<\/a> (GNL), warned top science officials in China, including a director at the\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/english.whiov.cas.cn\/\">Wuhan Institute of Virology<\/a> (WIV), about Florida Republican <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/kenrapoza\/2020\/04\/16\/eight-senators-call-for-investigation-into-coronavirus-origins\/?sh=20effd055049\">Sen. Marco Rubio\u2019s<\/a> interest in investigating the pandemic\u2019s origins. In April 2021, emails show Le Duc accepted a position on the \u201cBiosafety Advisory Committee\u201d at China\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/en.westlake.edu.cn\/\">Westlake University<\/a>, a private research university with ties to\u00a0the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese startling documents show that China had partners here in the United States willing to go to bat for them on the Wuhan lab controversy,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/www.judicialwatch.org\/about\/#staff\">Tom Fitton<\/a>, president of Judicial Watch, said in a statement. <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/05\/04\/china-taiwan-sanctions-bolton-chang-scissors\/\"><b>(RELATED: Did China Just Signal That It\u2019s On The Brink Of War?)<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Judicial Watch obtained Le Duc\u2019s emails through a public records request to the University of Texas Medical Branch.\u00a0Judicial Watch\u2019s investigation follows years of mystery surrounding COVID-19\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/05\/28\/editor-daily-rundown-biden-senate-covid-19-origins\/\">origins<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Early on, the theory that COVID leaked from the WIV was roundly dismissed by government officials and prominent scientists; at one point a New York Times reporter even <a href=\"https:\/\/www.msn.com\/en-us\/tv\/news\/ny-times-covid-reporter-deletes-tweet-claiming-racist-roots-of-lab-leak-theory-after-backlash\/ar-AAKrD8y?msclkid=af151332d13c11ec9aed250f7eb1c427\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">claimed<\/a> the Wuhan-origin theory had \u201cracist roots.\u201d However, scientists and experts increasingly <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thesun.co.uk\/news\/17047986\/wuhan-lab-leak-most-likely-cause-covid-pandemic\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">consider<\/a> it the \u201cmost likely\u201d origin for the virus, and Kentucky Republican Sen. Rand Paul has even accused Dr. Anthony Fauci of the National Institutes of Health and other top U.S. scientists of <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2021\/11\/04\/rand-paul-demands-fauci-resign-gain-of-function\/\">covering-up<\/a> their own culpability in a possible Wuhan lab leak.<\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_7423520\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\">\n<p id=\"caption-attachment-7423520\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Workers wearing personal protective equipment (PPE), install a barricade around a residential area under lockdown, amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Beijing, China, May 4, 2022. (REUTERS\/Carlos Garcia Rawlins)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Le Duc first sent his warning to Shi, whose <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/article-9650151\/Head-Wuhan-lab-University-N-Carolina-expert-warned-gain-function-research-risky.html?msclkid=d7970920d12b11eca8d6ce4506a8e2b6\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">controversial research<\/a> is at the center of the COVID origins debate, and other Chinese scientists in a series of emails beginning in April 2020.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wonder if you would have time for a phone call sometime soon\u2026 The email below is relevant,\u201d Le Duc wrote to Shi on April 16, 2020. Le Duc\u2019s email linked to a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.forbes.com\/sites\/kenrapoza\/2020\/04\/16\/eight-senators-call-for-investigation-into-coronavirus-origins\/?sh=20effd055049\">Forbes<\/a> report on Sen. Rubio\u2019s interest in investigating COVID\u2019s origins. Le Duc\u2019s email also included a message he\u2019d received from a former commander at the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases, warning that Rubio was pushing for a Wuhan lab investigation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDue to the complicated situation, I don\u2019t think it\u2019s a right time to communicate by the call\u2026 What I can tell you is that this virus is not a leaky [sic] from our lab or any other labs,\u201d Shi wrote back to Le Duc on April 18, 2020.<\/p>\n<p>Le Duc replied to Shi on April 19, 2020 with an offer to edit a draft document he intended to submit to University of Texas leadership and congressional committees.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMake any changes that you would like,\u201d Le Duc told Shi.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m afraid that this discussion will continue for some time regarding where early coronavirus work was being done,\u201d Le Duc wrote to Shi in a separate email dated April 20, 2020. Also included in this email was <a href=\"https:\/\/www.scitechnol.com\/editor-profile\/Yuan_Zhiming_PhD\/?utm_source=deployer&#038;utm_medium=email&#038;utm_campaign=press+release\">Dr. Yuan Zhiming<\/a>, director of the <a href=\"https:\/\/lssf.cas.cn\/en\/facilities-view.jsp?id=ff8080814ff56599014ff59e677e003d\">Wuhan National Biosafety Laboratory<\/a> at the <a href=\"https:\/\/english.cas.cn\/\">Chinese Academy of Sciences<\/a>, an institution which reports directly to the <a href=\"http:\/\/english.www.gov.cn\/state_council\/2014\/09\/03\/content_281474985533579.htm\">State Council<\/a> of the CCP.<\/p>\n<p>A little more than a year later, on April 26, 2021, Ting Yuan, assistant director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research at Westlake University in China, offered Le Duc a position as \u201cmember of the Biosafety Advisory Committee.\u201d Le Duc accepted the offer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt would be my pleasure to join Professor Yigong Shi and my colleagues Professor Pei -Yang Shi and Professor Zhiming Yuan<br \/>in this very important activity. I look forward to learning more about the new laboratory and how I might best contribute to your success,\u201d Le Duc wrote in an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.judicialwatch.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/05\/Wuhan-Lab-Production-UTMB-Records-April-2022-pgs-350-352.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">email<\/a> later that day.<\/p>\n<p>A spokesman for the University of Texas Medical Branch, where GNL is housed, told The Daily Caller News Foundation the offer to Le Duc was for an honorary advisory role that never came to fruition.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe GNL has never collaborated with the Wuhan Institute of Virology,\u00a0or any other Chinese institutions, on SARS-CoV-2 \/ COVID-19 research,\u201d UTMB spokesman Christopher Smith Gonzalez\u00a0said in an email. \u201cIts former director was approached about an honorary advisorship on biosafety. The advisorship never materialized after the offer was extended, and thus UTMB was not notified of the inconsequential exchange.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emails obtained by Judicial Watch also show Le Duc communicated with other high-level Chinese scientists, such as <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chinacdc.cn\/jgxx\/zxld\/201108\/t20110808_50422.html\">Gao \u201cGeorge\u201d Fu<\/a>, the director of the CCP-controlled <a href=\"https:\/\/www.chinacdc.cn\/\">Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention<\/a>. Le Duc congratulated Gao for his \u201cstrong leadership\u201d in a January 16, 2020 email.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou and your colleagues have prepared China well for this new threat and I think it is important that your efforts are recognized,\u201d Le Duc wrote to Gao.<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"s1\">Le Duc did not respond to the DCNF\u2019s request for comment. <a href=\"https:\/\/dailycaller.com\/2022\/05\/05\/beijing-shanghai-lockdown-zero-covid\/\"><b>(RELATED: LOCKED DOWN: Chinese Communist Party Orders Millions More To Stay Home)<\/b><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>This\u00a0post was updated with a response from the\u00a0University of Texas Medical Branch.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Content created by The Daily Caller News Foundation is available without charge to any eligible news publisher that can provide a large audience. For licensing opportunities of our original content, please contact <a href=\"mailto:licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org\">licensing@dailycallernewsfoundation.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Dr. James W. Le Duc, head of the Galveston National Laboratory, warned Chinese researchers about potential congressional investigations in April 2020, according to emails obtained by Judicial Watch. Le<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":489,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1472475","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1472475","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/489"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1472475"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1472475\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1472475"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1472475"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1472475"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}