The U.S. Right to Know (USRTK) released a trove of documents that detail a sophisticated collaboration between U.S. scientists and Chinese scientists at the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV). Back in 2018, Ralph Baric from the University of North Carolina and Peter Daszak from EcoHealth Alliance worked together to patent coronavirus genomes that were "less than 2% different" than SARS-CoV-2. These SARS-like chimeras were denoted as 293 and HK3.

In the year leading up to SARS-CoV-2, the U.S. and Chinese research teams were developing novel coronaviruses as part of "Project DEFUSE." – of which Baric and Daszak were a part. These engineered coronaviruses share many similarities with the genome of SARS-CoV-2, which was never isolated from the bat caves in Wuhan China. These details were shared with the FBI in March of 2020, but the federal government covered up valuable intel pointing to a lab leak.

FBI had credible evidence of lab leak in March 202o

According to an investigation by Public, the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) received credible intelligence in March 2020 that SARS-CoV-2 was engineered and had leaked from the WIV.

Public reporters Michael Shellenberger and Alex Gutentag claim that "multiple sources" reveal that a "Chinese national from Wuhan, working as a confidential human source for the FBI, told their handler at the FBI's Chinese Intelligence Squad." The "wet market" and "bat soup" narratives were cover stories. The FBI's entire 25-person unit that monitored Chinese intelligence knew that SARS-CoV-2 came from a lab back in March 2020.

After the FBI contacted Public, the agency let it be known that they, the FBI, trusted the individual who provided the intelligence. They had corroborated the person's information at least three times and it was considered "good intel." However, government officials continued to downplay and censor any mention of coronavirus gain-of-function and the very real potential of a lab leak.