The entry and search were ordered by Instruction Court Number 2 of Cerdanyola del Vallès, within the framework of preliminary proceedings declared secret. The main objective is to collect documentation crucial for the investigation. This joint operation is being carried out following the strict security protocols required for high biological containment research centers.
This police investigation adds to an audit commissioned by the Government of Catalonia and another inquiry led by the Ministry of Agriculture with scientific experts. All aim to determine how the ASF outbreak began, which has already caused the death of 13 wild boars in Catalonia.
The Ministry indicated that the detected virus belongs to a new genetic group, 29, not previously described in the European Union. This uniqueness raised suspicions that the strain might have escaped from a biological confinement facility. The strain is very similar to the one that circulated in Georgia in 2007 and matches the one commonly used in experimental infections to evaluate vaccine efficacy.
Investigations into the origin of the African Swine Fever outbreak do not rule out any option, including a potential laboratory leak.
Although IRTA-CReSA and its employees have described the center as an “authentic bunker” and assure that it is very difficult for the virus to escape, the proximity to other research centers, such as the Veterinary Faculty of the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), keeps all lines of inquiry open.
