Elias Beltran SuarezPhoto: Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department
A Las Vegas man is behind bars after an internet sleuth tipped off police to his bogus medical treatment.
Elias Beltran Suarez allegedly sold online his homemade "miracle product" Miracle Mineral Solution CD as a cure for autism, COVID-19, and even cancer, FOX 5 reported.
The product was actually chlorine dioxide, which is a disinfectant similar to bleach. The FDA warns not to drink chlorine dioxide because it can be deadly.
The tipster contacted Las Vegas Metro Police after having an "undercover conversation" with Beltran Suarez about his cure.
Police searched his home on Monday, August 30, and found a chemical lab where Beltran Suarez created his concoction. He was arrested after the Nevada State Board of Medical Examiners confirmed that Beltran Suarez was not a licensed doctor or medical professional.
According to police records, the suspect recently tried to sell a woman whose 6-year-old child was sick with COVID-19 an $800 machine to make chlorine dioxide. The machine was identified as the same one he uses to clean pools.
Beltran Suarez is now facing a felony charge of acting as a medical practitioner without a license, the Las Vegas Review Journal reported.
Last year, the FDA warned people against taking chlorine dioxide products as a cure for COVID-19 because "the agency is not aware of any scientific evidence supporting their safety or effectiveness and they pose significant risks to patient health."