Florida family who sold bleach as a "miracle cure" for covid is sentenced

A federal jury convicted four members of a Florida family of selling a bleach solution as a "miracle" cure for diseases like Covid.

This Wednesday, Mark Grenon, 65, and his sons Jonathan, 37; Joseph, 35; and Jordan, 29, were found guilty of conspiring to defraud the United States government and the FDA, which regulates the food and pharmaceutical industry, by distributing an unapproved and counterfeit brand-name drug, Miracle Mineral Solution (MMS).

As revealed in a note fromMiami Herald, the four opted to represent themselves at their two-day trial in federal court in Miami and said they would appeal the federal sentence.

Additionally, the jury found two of the Grenons – Jonathan and Gordon – guilty of two counts of violating federal court orders requiring them to stop selling MMS in 2020. These charges carry a maximum penalty of life in prison.

The same contempt charges were dismissed against the father, Mark, and the third brother, Joseph.

During the trial and closing arguments, prosecutors had a lot to say about the four Bradenton defendants, describing them as scammers who used a false religious facade on a website, the Genesis II Church of Health and Healing, to sell a million of dollars of his "Miracle Mineral Solution" as a cure for 95% of the known diseases in the world, from AIDS to the coronavirus.

"This entire Miracle Mineral Solution scheme was based on deception and dishonesty," prosecutor John Shipley said during his closing argument, telling jurors that the Grenons "created a false church to make it difficult for the Food and Drug Administration to and the government prevented them from selling snake oil.

However, "this was not a church," he argued. "This was a scam for money, an old-fashioned scam."

The sentence imposed carries up to five years in prison. The sentencing hearing against the father and three children is scheduled for October 6.

The familymarketed the substance under the false promise that it could treat, prevent and cure the COVID-19 virus, and sold tens of thousands of bottles throughout the US, including South Florida, despite the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) ) had not tried MMS and had warned about the danger of drinking that substance or similar ones.

The FDA warned that symptoms from MMS consumption could include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea and severe dehydration and said that reports that these discomforts were a sign that the product worked were false.

According to the Department of Justice, the FDA received reports of people requiring hospitalization and even dying after ingesting MMS.

Mark Grenon fled to Bogotá but was captured and transferred to the US, where he made his initial court appearance on July 28 of last year.