Church Said It Would ‘pick Up Arms’ If Its ‘miracle’ Cure Was Banned

LAST August I reported on the arrest of Mark Grenon, above – ‘Archbishop’ of the Genesis II Church of Health and Healing – for selling a toxic industrial bleach as a cure for Covid-19 and other conditions such as cancer, Alzheimer’s, diabetes, autism, malaria, hepatitis, Parkinson’s, herpes, and HIV/AIDS.

Then things went quiet until the US Attorney’s Office of the Southern District of Florida announced last Friday that a federal grand jury in Miami had returned an indictment against Grenon and three of his sons.

A statement from the Attorney Office revealed that in a separate civil case – United States v Genesis II Church of Health and Healing, et al – the US obtained court orders halting the Grenons’ distribution of “Miracle Mineral Solution” (MMS).

According to the latest charging documents, the Grenons willfully violated those court orders and continued to distribute MMS.

The Grenons also allegedly threatened the federal judge presiding over the civil case, saying that, should the government attempt to enforce the court orders, the Grenons would “pick up guns” and instigate “a Waco.”

The Miami indictment accuses Mark Grenon, 62 Jonathan Grenon, 34, Jordan Grenon, 26 and Joseph Grenon, 32 with fraudulently marketing and selling MMS. Jonathan, right and Jordan Grenon have been detained since their arrest, based on a judge’s finding that they posed a risk of non-appearance at future court proceedings and a danger to the community if released.

They were scheduled to be arraigned today (Monday) in federal magistrate court in Miami. Mark and Joseph Grenon are currently being held in Colombia.

Jonathan and Jordan Grenon were arrested last summer on related charges based on a criminal complaint filed by Miami federal prosecutors.

According to the indictment, the Grenons, all of Bradenton, Florida, manufactured, promoted, and sold a a chemical solution containing sodium chlorite and water which, when ingested orally, became chlorine dioxide, a powerful bleach typically used for industrial water treatment or bleaching textiles, pulp, and paper.

The Grenons claimed that ingesting MMS could treat, prevent, and cure COVID-19, according to the charges. The FDA, however, had not approved MMS for treatment of COVID-19, or for any other use. Rather, in prior official warning statements, the FDA had strongly urged consumers not to purchase or use MMS for any reason, explaining that drinking MMS was the same as drinking bleach and could cause dangerous side effects, including severe vomiting, diarrhea, and life-threatening low blood pressure.

In fact, FDA received reports of people requiring hospitalisations, developing life-threatening conditions, and even dying after drinking MMS.

The indictment further alleges that before marketing MMS as a cure for COVID-19, the Grenons marketed MMS as a miracle cure-all for dozens of other serious diseases and disorders, even though the FDA had not approved MMS for any use. The Grenons sold tens of thousands of bottles of MMS nationwide, including to consumers throughout South Florida, according to the allegations.

They sold this dangerous product under the guise of Genesis II Church of Health and Healing (“Genesis”), an entity they are accused of creating to avoid government regulation of MMS and shield themselves from prosecution.

The Genesis websites further stated that MMS could be acquired only through a “donation” to Genesis, but the donation amounts for MMS orders were set at specific dollar amounts, and were mandatory, such that the donation amounts were effectively just sales prices. The indictment alleges that the Grenons received more than $1 million from selling MMS.

The indictment also charges the Grenons with criminal contempt arising over their threat to the judge in the the civil case.

According to statements made in court by federal prosecutors in Miami, a search warrant was executed for defendant Jonathan Grenon’s house at the time of his arrest, and officers discovered that the Grenons were manufacturing MMS in a shed in Jonathan Grenon’s backyard in Bradenton, Florida.

Officers seized dozens of blue chemical drums containing nearly 10,000 pounds of sodium chlorite powder, thousands of bottles of MMS, and other items used in the manufacture and distribution of MMS.

The government also recovered multiple loaded firearms, including one pump-action shotgun concealed in a custom-made violin case to disguise its appearance, according to prosecutors.

The indictment charges each of the Grenons with one count of conspiracy to commit fraud and two counts of criminal contempt. If convicted, the Grenons face up to life imprisonment. A federal district judge will determine any sentence after considering the US Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

Last May the church’s Australian branch ran into trouble over its sale and promotion pf MMS and was issued infringement notices totalling $151,200 by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) .

Associate Professor Ken Harvey, above, an expert in public health from Monash University, has been lobbying the TGA to ban the sale of MMS in Australia for the past 10 years.

Approached by the media, the church’s man in Australia, Charles Barton, said at the time:

We have no comment, except to point out that this is a shocking and egregious attack on freedom of expression and freedom of religion in Australia. The very constitution of the Commonwealth of Australia is being trashed and thrown out the window, no less.

Barton did not respond to questions about whether MMS Australia would accept and pay the fine.

Hat tip: John Dowdle