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Missouri Court Gives Landmark $24 Billion Judgment Against China Over Covid 19 Pandemic

Missouri State Capital Building and Statue of Thomas Jefferson and Statehood Statues. (Photo: © Wayne Mckown | Dreamstime.com))

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By Aakansha Malia

March 20, 2025
6:02 pm
Los Angeles, CA

The crackdown against the Chinese government continues to intensify as a Missouri court has found Beijing guilty of covering up the COVID-19 pandemic and hoarding protective equipment in a ruling issued on March 7. Marking one of the biggest legal victories in the state’s history, Missouri Attorney General Andrew Bailey has secured a $24 billion judgment against the Communist Party of China. Bailey hailed the development as “a landmark victory for Missouri and the United States in the fight to hold China accountable for unleashing COVID-19 on the world.” The lawsuit was initially filed in 2020 against the CCP and the Wuhan Institute of Virology when the COVID-19 pandemic was at its peak, and thousands of people were dying every day. The plaintiffs first charged the Chinese government with

The lawsuit was initially filed in 2020 against the CCP and the Wuhan Institute of Virology when the COVID-19 pandemic was at its peak, and thousands of people were dying every day. The plaintiffs first charged the Chinese government with withholding information about the existence and spread of the virus. Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. wrote in his landmark ruling, “China was misleading the world about the dangers and scope of the Covid-19 pandemic.”

Accusing Chinese entities of obstructing the production, purchase, and export of essential medical equipment by taking control of American factories producing PPE, the lawsuit also claimed that China stockpiled protective gear, blocking its passage to the U.S. and other nations. Missouri District Judge Stephen Limbaugh Jr. added in his ruling, “China’s campaign to hoard the global supply of PPE was performed in conjunction with its repeated misrepresentations on the existence, and then scope and human-to-human transmissibility of, the COVID-19 virus.” He confirmed that the plaintiff had submitted substantial evidence to support this claim. China’s actions led to severe PPE shortages, driving up costs and directly affecting Missouri’s finances.

What were the economic damages Missouri faced?

The lawsuit argued that Missouri spent over $122 million to procure PPE kits during the emergency. The state also claimed to have lost more than $8 billion in tax revenue due to pandemic-related economic disruptions. Judge Limbaugh agreed with the state’s claims, ruling that China’s actions violated both state and federal anti-monopoly laws, stating, “During the early months of the pandemic, Missouri spent millions more on PPE than it otherwise would have because of Defendants’ hoarding.”

What happens next?

With the decision in the state’s favour, the court is set to enforce the $24 billion judgment by seizing Chinese assets. While China refused to attend court, Bailey, a Republican, stated, “We intend to collect every penny by seizing Chinese-owned assets, including Missouri farmland.”

On the other hand, China firmly rejected the Missouri court’s judgment against the CCP and other Chinese entities. Chinese spokeswoman Liu Pengyu hit back at the United States, responding, “The so-called lawsuit has no basis, law, or international precedence. China does not and will not accept it. If China’s interests are harmed, we will firmly take reciprocal countermeasures according to international law.”

In a huge cover-up by Beijing, doctors and journalists who warned the world about early infections in Wuhan were either officially confirmed dead, went missing, or were jailed by CCP authorities.

An appalling 5,100 Chinese citizens were arrested in the first few weeks of the COVID outbreak for sharing the truth about the deadly disease, and numerous dissidents were labelled as sick so the government could place them in medical quarantine. The Chinese government continues to remain silent about the fate of these whistle blowers, who were branded as enemies and are now believed to be in secret detention centres—a sinister form of extrajudicial imprisonment described by officials as “residential surveillance at a designated location.”