Napa Doctor Accused In Fake COVID-19 Vaccine Scheme: Feds

NAPA, CA — A Napa woman was arrested Wednesday and charged with wire fraud and false statements related to health care matters in what federal authorities said was the first federal criminal case related to homeoprophylaxis immunizations and fraudulent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — CDC — COVID-19 vaccination record cards.

Juli Mazi, 41, a naturopathic doctor with a primary care office on California Boulevard in Napa, is accused of a scheme to sell homeoprophylaxis immunization pellets and falsify COVID-19 vaccination cards by making it appear that customers received the U.S. Food and Drug Administration — FDA — authorized Moderna vaccine, according to a joint announcement from the FBI's San Francisco Field Office, the U.S. Deputy Attorney General's Office, the Acting U.S. Attorneys Office of Northern California, and the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (HHS-OIG).

Mazi is accused of creating counterfeit COVID-19 vaccination cards and instructing her customers to falsely mark that they received a vaccine, allowing them to circumvent efforts to contain the spread of the disease, U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco said.

"This defendant allegedly defrauded and endangered the public by preying on fears and spreading misinformation about FDA-authorized vaccinations, while also peddling fake treatments that put people’s lives at risk," Monaco said. "The Department of Justice and its law enforcement partners are committed to protecting the American people from fraudsters during this national emergency."

The prosecution against Mazi shows the commitment and ongoing work of the U.S. Department of Justice and its agency partners in the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force established by the attorney general earlier this year, Monaco said.

According to a 24-page court complaint unsealed Wednesday, someone submitted a complaint in April to the Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General —HHS-OIG— hotline stating their family members purchased from Mazi. The tipster said Mazi told their family members the pellets contained the COVID-19 virus and would create an antibody response in the immune system.

The tipster reported that their family did not receive injections of any of the three FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccines. However, in connection with the delivery of the homeoprophylaxis immunization pellets, Mazi sent COVID-19 Vaccination Record cards, with Moderna listed, to the complainant's family, prosecutors said.

It is alleged that Mazi instructed the person's family members to mark the cards to falsely state that they received the Moderna vaccine on the date that they ingested the COVID-19 homeoprophylaxis immunization pellets.

The court documents allege Mazi offered homeoprophylaxis immunizations for childhood illnesses that she falsely claimed would satisfy the immunization requirements for California schools and falsified immunization cards that were submitted by parents to California schools.

Homeoprophylaxis involves the exposure of an individual to dilute amounts of a disease, purportedly to stimulate the immune system and confer immunity.

According to prosecutors, Mazi told customers that the pellets contained a "very minute amount of this [COVID-19] disease" that can result in "infectious symptoms" of COVID-19 or "automatically flag[] the immune system’s attention, inducing immunity."

She is accused of making false claims that orally ingesting the pellets with small amounts of COVID-19 would result in full lifelong immunity from the coronavirus disease.

Prosecutors allege that to encourage customers to purchase the pellets, Mazi exploited disinformation and fear by falsely claiming that the FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccines contain "toxic ingredients." Mazi told her customers they could provide the pellets to children for COVID-19 immunity, and that the "dose is actually the same for babies."

Prosecutors said based on information obtained from the FDA, Mazi's representations were false and fraudulent because there is no remedy that provides “lifelong immunity” to COVID-19; because exposing individuals to COVID-19 to promote an immune response is not an FDA-authorized treatment for COVID-19 and creates risks to their health and safety; and because FDA-authorized COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective for use by the public.

"Spreading inaccurate or false medical information about COVID-19 for personal gain, as the complaint alleges, is dangerous and only seeds skepticism among the public," said Craig Fair, special agent in charge of the FBI's San Francisco Field Office.

Prosecutors accuse Mazi of providing CDC COVID-19 vaccination record cards to her customers with instructions on how to fraudulently complete the cards to falsely make it appear as if a customer had received two doses of the Moderna vaccine. As part of her scheme, prosecutors allege, Mazi provided customers with specific Moderna vaccine lot numbers to enter onto the cards and instructions on how to select the purported dates on which they had received the Moderna vaccines to evade suspicion.

"As the government continues to work to provide current and accurate information to help slow the spread of COVID-19, the FBI will continue to pursue those who attempt to fraudulently profit from spreading misinformation and providing false documentation," Fair said.

Patch was not immediately able to reach Mazi for comment Wednesday afternoon.

If convicted, Mazi faces a maximum statutory prison sentence of 20 years for the wire fraud charge and 5 years for the false statements charge, federal officials said Wednesday. In addition, each charge carries a maximum $250,000 fine and 3 years of supervised release.

"This doctor violated the all-important trust the public extends to healthcare professionals — at a time when integrity is needed the most," said HHS-OIG Special Agent in Charge Steven Ryan. "Working closely with our law enforcement partners, our agency will continue to investigate such fraudsters who recklessly endanger the public’s health during the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis."