Bradenton ‘church’ leaders in South American jail for selling bleach as COVID-19 cure
Colombian officials say they have arrested two Bradenton men wanted in the United States on charges they illegally sold a bleachlike chemical as a miracle cure for the new coronavirus and other diseases.
The Colombian prosecutor’s office said Mark and Joseph Grennon were arrested in the beach town of Santa Marta, and were shipping their “Miracle Mineral Solution” — chlorine dioxide — from there to clients in the United States, Colombia and Africa.
It said seven Americans had died from using the substance.
Mark Grenon is the archbishop of the Genesis II Church of Health and Healing, based in Bradenton, which is centered on use of the toxic chemical as a supposed sacrament it claims can cure a vast variety of illnesses ranging from cancer to autism to malaria and now COVID-19..
A Miami federal judge in April ordered the self-styled church to stop selling the substance, but it was ignored.
The Genesis Church for Healing and Health had already been selling the “cure” since April of 2019 and through December of 2019 had raked in about a half million dollars claiming their “Mineral Miracle Solution could cure AIDS, cancer and other ailments.
The Grenon family, made up of Mark Grenon and his three sons, went so far as to claim the cure was safe for children and animals.
It wasn’t until they made the claim at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in March that it could also cure COVID-19 that their product came to the attention of the federal government.
Mark Grenon and his son Joseph are now in a Colombian jail. Mark Grenon’s other two sons, Jodan and Jonathan were arrested in July following a raid by federal agents and members of the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office hazmat unit at the church’s Bradenton headquarters. Agents removed several barrels labeled as hazardous materials.
Mark and Joseph Grenon will eventually be extradited back to the U.S. to face criminal charges. A south Florida federal judge has also ordered the family to pay for a recall and destruction of their so-called miracle cure.
According to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel, court records show that the church had made about $500,000 in sales from April to December of 2019, but COVID-19 rocketed sales.
It wasn’t until the claim was made that their product could cure COVID-19 that the Food and Drug Administration took notice and got involved.
The FDA ordered the church to stop production in April, but Mark Grenon refused and a federal injunction was issued in May.
“There will be NO corrective actions on our part ... You have no authority over us! ... Never going to happen,” Grenon wrote in a response letter to the injunction.
They were charged in July with conspiracy to defraud the United States and conspiracy to violate the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, as well as criminal contempt of court.
Fajardo Orshan, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, said in court filings that the product is not only toxic, “but its distribution and use may prevent those who are sick from receiving the legitimate healthcare they need.”
According to the Food and Drug Administration, the solution sold by the Grenons becomes a bleach when ingested that is typically used for such things as treating textiles, industrial water, pulp and paper.
Authorities said drinking that bleach can be fatal.
The FDA said in a news release last August that “ingesting these products is the same as drinking bleach. Consumers should not use these products, and parents should not give these products to their children for any reason.” The FDA has not approved the solution for any health-related uses.
Mark Grenon and his son Joseph were already in Colombia when authorities raided their Bradenton headquarters.
After the arrest of two of his sons, Mark Grenon posted on his website, “It’s a sad day for the U.S. when a Church and its Bishops arrested for helping others!”
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
This story was originally published August 13, 2020 at 7:44 AM.