Who are the Grenons? Bradenton family on trial, charged with selling bleach as COVID cure
The Grenons, a Bradenton family who sold bleach as an alleged COVID-19 cure, are on trial this week for fraudulent marketing and selling the product.
Mark Grenon, 65, and his three sons – Jonathan Grenon, 37, Joseph Grenon, 35, and Jordan Grenon, 29, sold the “Miracle Mineral Solution” as a cure for dozens of serious diseases and disorders.
They received more than $1 million from selling MMS as a treatment for ailments such as COVID-19, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, autism, Parkinson’s disease, and other serious medical conditions, according to a press release from the U.S. Department of Justice.
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The trial began Monday with the Grenons representing themselves. They declined to make opening statements and pleaded not guilty, according to reports from the Miami Herald.
The defendants are accused of attempting to avoid government regulation and prosecution by posing as an online church named “Genesis II Church of Health and Healing” to sell the products to shield themselves from prosecution, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office of the Southern District of Florida.
Did they sell bleach as a COVID-19 cure?
MMS was marketed as a cure for illnesses, like COVID-19. In August 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a warning telling consumers not to purchase or use MMS for any reason, explaining that when mixed with citric acid – as instructed on the label – the product became a powerful bleach.
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According to the indictment, the four Florida men manufactured, promoted, and sold tens of thousands of bottles of MMS, “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 FDA received reports of people requiring hospitalizations, developing life-threatening conditions, and even dying after drinking MMS.
When were they arrested?
Jonathan and Jordan Grenon were arrested in 2020, while Mark and Joseph Grenon fled to Colombia. They were arrested and extradited several months later.
During the 2020 arrest, federal prosecutors executed a search warrant on Jonathan Grenon’s home. Officers said they found a backyard shed where the products were made. Officials seized chemical drums containing nearly 10,000 pounds of sodium chlorite powder, thousands of bottles of MMS, and multiple loaded firearms, according to the press release.
Did Trump endorse their "miracle" product?
Mark Grenon, the “archbishop” of the church, gained national notoriety in April 2020 when he sent President Trump a letter praising his "miracle" product. Grenon then took credit for Trump’s suggestion that injecting disinfectant into the lungs can cure coronavirus, but Trump later said he was being sarcastic.
What charges are they facing?
The Grenons have been charged with fraudulent marketing and selling MMS and defying federal court orders to stop selling the product. The indictment 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 indictment also charges the Grenons with criminal contempt. While the United States obtained court orders halting the Grenons’ distribution of MMS, the Grenons violated those court orders and continued to distribute MMS, according to court documents.
The Grenons also allegedly threatened the federal judge presiding over the civil case. They threatened that if the government attempted to enforce the court orders stopping their distribution of MMS, the Grenons would “pick up guns” and instigate “a Waco," according to court documents.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: Charges: Florida family sold bleach as 'Miracle Mineral Solution'
