Self proclaimed “King of Infomercial” Don Lapre was found dead in his Arizona jail cell Sunday, less than two days before his trial for fraud was set to begin. U.S. Marshals spokesman Matt Hershey said Lapre, the man behind The Greatest Vitamin in the World, appears to have committed suicide. Lapre’s death is under investigation. No other details were released.
Lapre, 47, was arrested in June after failing to appear for his arraignment on 41 counts of mail fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy, promotional money laundering and transactional money laundering. Prosecutors accused him of selling worthless internet businesses and vitamins, ultimately scamming more than 220,000 people out of $52 million. At the time of his arrest, authorities said Lapre attempted to committed suicide by slitting his femoral artery. He was taken into custody with a gash in his groin.
Lapre maintained his innocence, writing on his website, “I tried to create the best product on earth, paid out millions, made very little trying to make it a success, had attorneys review my entire company, paid out millions in refunds, tried to make the commission and products better every single year, and in spite of all that, I have been accused of something I did not do.”
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