Pennsylvania Republican Rep. Guy Reschenthaler is demanding a “full and transparent” investigation into the “potential theft of government funds” and “criminal conduct” over the reported double billing of federal agencies for projects in Wuhan, China.
Following a bombshell report this week that the United States government reportedly made duplicate payments to fund projects at the Wuhan, China, laboratory — the proposed origin of the coronavirus pandemic, Chief Deputy Whip Rep. Guy Reschenthaler (R-PA) spoke with Breitbart News to address the issue.
In an exclusive statement on Tuesday, the congressman expressed concern over the matter that may have potentially led to a loss of tens of millions of dollars.
“I’m deeply concerned by the reports of federal agencies making duplicate payments to dangerous Chinese labs that specialize in risky pathogenic research,” Reschenthaler said.
“This potential theft of government funds and criminal conduct cannot stand,” he added.
He then called on Congress to “immediately initiate a full and transparent investigation into funding given to these labs by the National Institutes of Health and the U.S. Agency for International Development.”
Wuhan residents are kept under armed guard as Chinese dictator Xi Jinping pays his first visit to the heart of the coronavirus outbreak. “…massive security and propaganda operation surrounding Xi’s visit.” https://t.co/3o6YsocmXG
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) March 11, 2020
According to a review of records by CBS News, the Wuhan lab in communist-controlled China allegedly received double the funds from research grants through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Federal investigator Diane Cutler, who was hired by Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) to investigate U.S. government grants going to high-risk research in China prior to the coronavirus pandemic, called the double billing a “potential theft of government funds.”
“What I’ve found so far is evidence that points to double billing, potential theft of government funds. It is concerning, especially since it involves dangerous pathogens and risky research,” she said, after having viewed over 50,000 documents.
Cutler’s findings were shared with the internal watchdog at USAID, though a spokesperson for the independent agency declined to comment.
The matter follows FBI Director Christopher Wray’s indication last month that the coronavirus may have originated in the Wuhan lab.
“The FBI has for quite some time now assessed that the origins of the pandemic are most likely a potential lab incident in Wuhan,” he said. “Here you are talking about a potential leak from a Chinese government-controlled lab.”
In January, Reschenthaler introduced a bill to defund EcoHealth Alliance, an NGO accused of collaborating with the Chinese institute to study bat coronaviruses.
DOD Awarded $3M to EcoHealth Alliance Despite Work with Wuhan Lab https://t.co/ZVtE5N3lpM via @BreitbartNews
— Kristina Wong 🇺🇸 (@kristina_wong) January 24, 2023
The Pennsylvania congressman deemed it “unconscionable” that the U.S. nonprofit “repeatedly funneled American taxpayer dollars” to the CCP-controlled Wuhan virology lab that conducts “potentially deadly research,” as he warned against “risky experiments in foreign labs run by our adversaries.”
Currently, House Republicans continue to make the origins of COVID-19 and the potential role of such groups and the Wuhan Institute of Virology a top investigative priority.
Follow Joshua Klein on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.
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