Health

A Russian entrepreneur who loaned millions to Donald Trump's social media platform was behind a series of websites that pushed potentially dangerous "sex pills" that sparked warnings from health regulators about dangerous ingredients, according to a report.

The product, called VMax, promised improved sexual function for those who take it and sparked warnings from the FDA that its ingredients could cause serious health defects.

The sites where the product was sold have been traced to 40-year-old Anton Postolnikov, who reportedly has family links to the Kremlin, according to The Daily Beast which reported he has a history of "success in niche online businesses such as providing financial services to porn stars and camgirls."

Postolnikov, who has donated to Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, is suspected by the U.S. government of making nearly $23 million in 2021 from alleged insider trading on Truth Social, the social media platform owned by Trump. Although he hasn't been charged in the case, the FBI's investigation found he participated in the scheme, according to the Beast's report.

Also read: 'Old and tired and mad': Trump’s demeanor in court detailed by Rachel Maddow

"Before his alleged foray into Florida high finance, Postolnikov was involved in the selling of Vimax, which was sold via offshore companies in the U.S., Cyprus, and Mauritius, according to the products’ websites," the Beast reported.

"New Century Beauty LLC, the company which was described as owner and operator of vimaxtrialoffer.com on the site, is registered at the California address of Postolnikov’s mother, Lyudmila Postolnikova, aged 73. Izef LLC which listed Postolnikov as an administrator, handled sales of Vimax for a period, according to archived snapshots of the sales websites," The Beast's report stated.

The sex pills were marketed as being a "100% natural product," but the FDA says they contain the Ingredient tadalafil, which could lower blood pressure and negatively interact with other drugs. But according to Andrei Octav Moise, whose company trademarked the product, the FDA only examined counterfeit versions of the product.

“The FDA did indeed find knockoffs of Vimax sold by a Chinese company without any authorization from nor relationship to the Vimax brand. Essentially the knockoff products did contain illegal substances and were investigated by the FDA who ultimately held that they were not authentic Vimax products and had nothing to do with Vimax per se,” he said according to The Beast.

U.S. prosecutors are looking at Postolnikov over the way he structured the loan to Truth Social through an obscure entity called “ES Family Trust.”

"Wire transfer documents show that Trump Media received $2 million from Paxum Bank and another $6 million from ES Family Trust. Documents obtained by the authors show that the trustee for ES Family Trust is Angel Pacheco, who reportedly listed himself as an employee of Paxum Bank on LinkedIn."

Read the full report over at The Daily Beast.

Reacting to an angry rant delivered by Donald Trump when he showed up for court on Friday morning, CNN Senior Legal Analyst Elie Honig noted the former president looked "frazzled," which could be a clue to prosecutors that they are getting to him after only three days in court.

Speaking with host Kate Bolduan after the former president had already been admitted into the courtroom, where he will tried on 34 felony counts in the Stormy Daniels hush money trial, Honig noted that Trump seemed agitated as he addressed the press and listed off a series of grievances.

"Elie, from just watching how Donald Trump was in speaking to reporters before he went in, he was — he was definitely at least projecting that he was angry and frustrated, if he wasn't actually angry and frustrated," CNN's Bolduan prompted her colleague. "If you're a prosecutor and you're watching him act the way he did this morning, what do you think? Do you already think you are winning?"

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"So he definitely looked frazzled," the legal analyst replied and then added, "I think that's a good word we can use for this."

"If he's frazzled now, just wait until week three because I think what Donald Trump is learning is that it is enormously stressful to be on trial," he continued. "I've never even had, of course, the experience of being the defendant, I've just done it as a lawyer."

"It's incredibly stressful," he elaborated. "It's long days, it's excruciating. It can be boring. We saw him nodding off during jury selection and it will get to him.

"And I think, if I'm the prosecutor — I'm not so into the head games in the psychology of it all — but I do think I would see someone who's perhaps fraying a bit at the edges and, who knows, that may lead to poor strategic decisions by Donald Trump or other behavior that could be self-destructive."

Watch below or at the link.

CNN 04 19 2024 09 33 00 youtu.be