Lab didn’t tell police 22 vials stolen

May 16, 2009 by Infowars Ireland

Former researcher in U.S. custody accused of cross-border smuggling

WINIPEG – No one from Winnipeg’s National Microbiology Laboratory bothered to report the theft of 22 vials of biological material to police, despite an international uproar over a former researcher accused of smuggling the substances across the U.S. border.

On Wednesday, scientific director Dr. Frank Plummer confirmed RCMP alerted lab staff about the stolen materials on May 5 — the same day a former vaccine researcher was arrested by FBI special agents after U.S. Customs discovered the vials stuffed in a glove in the trunk of his car at the Manitoba-North Dakota border crossing.
Some of the vials included genes from the deadly Ebola virus, but local scientists say the material is not infectious.

Konan Michel Yao, 42, faces U.S. criminal charges for smuggling and is currently in the custody of a U.S. marshal.

The vials are considered government property, and Plummer initially said the matter was referred to Winnipeg police.

But on Thursday — more than a week after the theft came to light — police said no one from the lab has reported the incident.

“Right now, we’re not investigating it,” a police spokeswoman said, noting the theft falls within Winnipeg Police Service jurisdiction because it occurred within the city.

Lab officials did not respond to calls from the Free Press on Thursday.

The latest revelation comes one day after senior lab officials admitted they had no idea that 22 vials of biological substances were missing from the high-security facility for close to four months.

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