Daily Mirror (Northern Ireland)
Another big fat lie
Miracle diet pills supposedly used by stars are really just...
IF true, this would be quite some achievement.
“It was the most watched episode in Dragons’ Den history when sisters Anna and Samantha Martin won over the Dragons’ Den panel,” gushes a website for supposed fat-burning weight loss pills costing just £4.95.
“Never before had the judging panel unanimously decided to each invest over a million dollars into a potential company.”
Which raises an obvious question: why would the Dragons invest dollars and not pounds?
Still, the site goes on to claim that a bunch of Hollywood celebrities endorse the product, Trimgenix Garcinia.
“I have a hectic schedule and I don’t have a lot of time to devote to workout routines,” the website quotes actress Sandra Bullock as saying.
“That’s why I love Trimgenix Garcinia! Taking just one per day helps me stay toned and feeling healthy and energetic.”
The pills are made from a tropical fruit, garcinia cambogia, and besides burning fat they supposedly aid sleep and increase energy.
I’ve no idea if that’s true, but I can confidently say that the celebrity endorsements are fake.
“This site is using Sandra Bullock’s name and image without her giving permission,” her spokeswoman said.
“She is not associated in any capacity with this product nor has she ever used it.”
The US equivalent of Dragons’ Den is Shark Tank. Funnily enough, there are websites flogging Trimgenix with the headline: “$4.95 weight loss pill that naturally burns fat gets biggest deal in Shark Tank history.”
So, did it win Dragons’ Den or Shark Tank? The answer is neither.
The pictures of Anna and Samantha Martin really show two sisters called Shelly Hyde and Kara Haught, who went on Shark Tank to promote a swimwear range.
Their pictures have been used ever since by con men to promote junk that is nothing to do with them.
“We would love to get them to stop, not sure how though,” they said. “It’s so frustrating.” Last year, I told how the same pictures were used to flog a skin cream called, among other names, Total Age Repair.
The blurb was identical: “Never before had the judging panel unanimously decided to each invest over a million dollars into a potential company”.
The only difference is that back then the sisters were given the names Anna and Samantha Williams. The skin cream scam is still active and one of the names it now uses is Le Baleux Moisturiser. This uses the same picture of the sisters and also the fabricated endorsement from Sandra Bullock. “I have a hectic schedule and I don’t have a lot of time to devote to beauty routines,” she’s quoted. “That’s why I love Le Baleux Moisturiser! Just a few minutes every night keeps my skin beautiful and wrinkle free.”
These products typically use pressureselling to push free samples. This Tuesday, one garcinia site read: “Free samples are limited. Expires on Tuesday, February 20, 2018.”
What you won’t know unless you find the small print is that you’ll be sent more of the stuff every month, along with a bill.
“I applied for a free trial of Total Age Repair which I received a month or so ago,” one reader has just told me.
“Today I’ve had another jar and a fee of £89.95.”
She received a £44.97 refund after complaining, but has since had another £89.95 deduction from her account without even receiving another jar – which means that so far the “free trial” has cost almost £135.
If you’re the victim of sharp practice I want to hear about it. Email investigate@mirror.co.uk or write to Penman Investigates, Daily Mirror, One Canada Square, London E14 5AP. I can’t respond to every letter but can promise to read them all. Please, no SAES or original documents.