According to the Department of Justice, an actor who has appeared in films such as “Iron Man 2” and “Moneyball” is facing prison time for promoting a fake COVID cure during the early days of the pandemic.
On Monday, United States District Judge Dale S. Fischer sentenced 57-year-old Keith Lawrence Middlebrook to 98 months in prison and a $25,000 fine.
In May, a jury in the United States Central District of California convicted Middlebrook on 11 counts of wire fraud.
Middlebrook began soliciting potential investors for a patent on a purported “cure” for the disease called “QC20” and a “treatment” dubbed “QP20” in March 2020, just as COVID-19 began to spread around the world.
Middlebrook advertised his so-called products on YouTube and Instagram, claiming to have attracted A-list investors such as basketball great Earvin “Magic” Johnson.
He stated that a group of individuals in Dubai had offered to buy his company for $10 billion. Middlebrook promised potential investors “enormous returns.”
According to a probable cause arrest affidavit, in a YouTube video about his “products,” he referred to himself as the “Real Iron Man” and claimed that the pandemic was “designed and meant to destroy the greatest economy in US history built by” then-President Donald Trump.
However, none of his claims were true.
There was no known cure for COVID, and a vaccine to treat the illness was more than a year away from approval.
Johnson’s business representative told FBI agents that the former Los Angeles Lakers star had no involvement in any COVID investments.
When shown a photo of Middlebrook’s driver’s license, Johnson claimed to have “never met, spoken to, or seen this individual,” according to the affidavit from FBI agents. Prosecutors said Johnson testified to these facts at trial.
Middlebrook’s lawyer was upset. In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, he described Johnson as “the biggest liar I’ve ever seen, and we’ll prove it.”
“We’re going to go out and prove that Magic Johnson is a liar,” Stein told the newspaper, adding that he “did not know how the jury convicted” his client.
A Johnson representative was not immediately available for comment.
Middlebrook stood defiant on the witness stand. Fischer determined that the defendant lied when testifying on his own behalf.
He continued to claim that Johnson was a member of his company. Prosecutors claimed Fischer gave Middlebrook a harsher sentence due in part to his lies.
Middlebrook was arrested by the FBI in March 2020 after delivering pills to an undercover agent posing as an investor, claiming they would prevent COVID infection.
According to his IMDb page, Middlebrook has played minor roles in films such as “Iron Man 2,” “Moneyball,” “Bad Teacher,” and “Thor.” He also appeared on two episodes of “The Sopranos.”
Middlebrook has also claimed to be the inspiration for the HBO series “Ballers.”
