A criminal case concerning the sale of an apple-cider-vinegar solution to cancer patients under the guise of medication Nizhny Novgorod Regional Court; the verdict was handed down on 27 August 2026. The two convicted individuals, who held no medical qualifications and no licence to provide medical services, had since 2023 been persuading oncology patients to abandon conventional treatment and purchase "innovative drugs" from them, knowing full well that those products had no therapeutic properties.[1][2] The case attracted widespread public attention in Nizhny Novgorod Region.

Circumstances of the crime

The fraud scheme had been operating since 2023. The perpetrators offered cancer patients a "miraculous elixir" — a solution based on apple cider vinegar — selling it as a cancer remedy.[1] One of the victims, along with her husband, was persuaded over the course of nine months to keep buying new "drugs," with the defendants insisting she abandon conventional therapy. That woman subsequently died of her cancer.[2][4] The second victim, doubting the "healers'" competence, sent the purchased products for independent testing; the examination confirmed a complete absence of any therapeutic components, after which she filed a report with the police.[1][2] The total financial damage to both victim families amounted to 14.1 million roubles.[1][4]

The criminal activity was suppressed by Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for the Nizhny Novgorod Region of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for Nizhny Novgorod Region, acting in cooperation with the FSB Regional Directorate and Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of Russia for Nizhny Novgorod Oblast.[1][4] Criminal cases were opened against the defendants on charges of fraud, attempted fraud, and unlicensed medical practice; both were held in custody for the duration of the investigation.[2]

Verdict

On 27 August 2026, the Nizhny Novgorod Regional Court sentenced both defendants.[1] One defendant was sentenced to nine years in a general-regime correctional colony, and the other — a woman — to seven years and six months in a general-regime colony. Both were additionally banned from engaging in any medical activity for a period of two years.[2][5]

Sources

  1. Vremya N — Fake medics who "treated" cancer patients with apple-cider-vinegar solution convicted in Nizhny Novgorod
  2. NIA "Nizhny Novgorod" — Nizhny Novgorod fake medics receive custodial sentences for "treating" cancer with vinegar
  3. Newsroom24 — Fake medics in Nizhny Novgorod convicted of selling cancer patients a vinegar solution
  4. Otkryty Nizhny — Pseudo-doctors receive custodial sentences for treating cancer patients with vinegar
  5. NN.RU