Longtime televangelist Jim Bakker and his Missouri-based ministry were ordered Tuesday to pay $ 156,000 in restitution to listeners duped into buying a bogus COVID-19 “cure” peddled by the prominent Trump supporter.
“The lawsuit alleged that Bakker and Morningside Church Productions, which do business as the Jim Bakker Show Ministry, sold a product called” Silver Solution “which they believe could kill or deactivate the coronavirus and boost children’s immune systems. people, “KCUR, NPR’s local Kansas City affiliate, reported Wednesday.
The settlement stems from a lawsuit filed in March 2020 by the Missouri Attorney General’s Office, Eric Schmitt, regarding the sale of the “Optivida Silver Solution” product. Court records indicate that the settlement requires Bakker to reimburse those who purchased the product – and he still has nearly $ 90,000 left.
At the height of the pandemic, viewers were handing out “donations” of $ 80 or $ 125 in exchange for the fake COVID-19 cure, which Bakker shipped directly to their homes.
On a broadcast of the show that aired on February 12, 2020, Sherill Sellman, who has been identified as a ‘naturopathic doctor’ and ‘natural health expert’, said: ‘Silver Sol has been proven by the government that it has the ability to kill any pathogens it has ever been tested on, including SARS and HIV, â€according to KCUR, despite the lack of medical or peer-reviewed data suggesting that there is a cure for COVID-19. The Food and Drug Administration sent Bakker a letter after the February segment asking him to stop advertising the product, which it said was not a legitimate cure for COVID-19.
Another clause in the settlement prohibits Bakker and his company from continuing to sell the “Silver Solution” to “diagnose, prevent, mitigate, treat or cure any disease”.
Bakker was not the only one who saw an opportunity to profit from the pandemic by selling questionable “cures” to his public.
Far-right conspiracy theorist Alex Jones, has also sold similar products, including “SuperSilver whitening toothpaste” and “SuperSilver dressing gel,” which have been touted as quick COVID-19 cures in a bottle. Both the Federal Trade Commission and the FDA have ordered Jones to halt sales of his website’s products, though, notably, neither has ordered the far-right denier Sandy Hook to reimburse those victims.
