A Missouri federal judge has held the Chinese government accountable for covering up the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic and stockpiling protective equipment ( PPE), issuing a judgment of over$ 24 billion.
” This is a landmark victory for Missouri and the United States in the fight to hold China accountable for unleashing COVID-19 on the world”, the Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey said, as reported by the New York Post.
The Missouri attorney general’s office initiated legal proceedings in April 2020, during the pandemic’s initial phase, claiming the Chinese government suppressed information about the virus’s presence and transmission whilst restricting global access to personal protective equipment ( PPE).
Chinese officials remained indifferent to the court proceedings, and their official staff in Washington offered no immediate opinion on Friday.
Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. of the US District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri stated that” China was misleading the world about the dangers and scope of the COVID-19 epidemic” and had “engaged in monopolistic deeds to stockpile PPE”.
These activities, he noted, impeded America’s first pandemic response and prevented enough gear acquisition for medical workers treating disease patients.
According to The New York Times, Judge Limbaugh issued the view against China, its ruling Communist Party, regional governments, a health company, and a lab within the state.
Attorney General Andrew Bailey stated,” China refused to show up to court, but that doesn’t mean they get away with causing untold anguish and financial devastation”.
” We intend to collect every coin by seizing Chinese-owned resources, including Missouri farmland”, he added.
Earlier in 2020, following the prosecution’s registration, Chinese officials contested its authenticity. Foreign government spokeswoman Geng Shuang described the complaint as “very ironic” and “has no scientific and constitutional basis at all”.
But, Limbaugh concluded that Missouri’s lawful staff demonstrated China’s prior knowledge of the disease’s spread and human-to-human tranny before sharing this information worldwide.
The judge also found that Missouri proved China’s nationalisation of British factories in China for protective gear output, which restricted export supplies and increased costs in regions like Missouri. He highlighted that COVID-19 ranked as Missouri’s third-leading cause of death in 2020 and 2021.
