SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — A Utah man accused of selling unproven COVID-19 cures throughout the pandemic has been arrested after a three-year manhunt, according to the U.S. Dept. of Justice.

Gordon Hunter Pedersen, 63, of Cedar Hills, was spotted during surveillance by federal agents on July 5, 2023, according to court documents. Pedersen reportedly had a warrant issued for his arrest back in August 2020 for failing to appear on an indictment in federal court.

Officials said these charges included mail fraud, wire fraud, and felony introduction of misbranded drugs into interstate commerce with intent to defraud and mislead.

At the beginning of the pandemic, before approved vaccines were available, Pedersen allegedly sold a “structural alkaline silver” product over the internet, court documents state. Pedersen claimed the product “resonates, or vibrates, at a frequency that destroys the membrane of the virus, making the virus incapable of attaching to any healthy cell, or to infect you in anyway.”

According to a release, Pedersen also falsely claimed to have a Ph.D. in immunology and a Ph.D. in naturopathic medicine.

Officials said Pedersen is scheduled to make his initial appearance on the indictment on Tuesday, Aug. 15, at 1:30 p.m. at the Orrin G. Hatch U.S. District Courthouse in downtown Salt Lake City.

This case is being investigated jointly by the FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Salt Lake City Field Office.

On May 17, 2021, the Attorney General established the COVID-19 Fraud Enforcement Task Force to marshal the resources of the Department of Justice in partnership with agencies across government to enhance efforts to combat and prevent pandemic-related fraud. The Task Force bolsters efforts to investigate and prosecute the most culpable domestic and international criminal actors and assists agencies tasked with administering relief programs to prevent fraud by augmenting and incorporating existing coordination mechanisms, identifying resources and techniques to uncover fraudulent actors and their schemes, and sharing and harnessing information and insights gained from prior enforcement efforts.

U.S. Attorney’s Office District of Utah