Fugitive Profile: Stephen Mark VAN ROOYEN
Stephen Mark VAN ROOYEN
Also Known As:
BCARLISLE Sebastian; Mark DEHAVILLAN; Stephen Mark Van ROOYEN; Steve V ROOYEN; Stephen VAN ROOYEN; Steve VAN ROOYEN; Stephen VANROOYEN; Stephen Mark VANROOYEN
Date and Place of Birth:
16 January 1962-Capetown, South Africa
Summary of OCI Investigation:
Between spring 2002 and March 2006, in the Northern District of Georgia and elsewhere, Stephen VAN ROOYEN and Laura Brown operated a business named Biomark International, (Biomark), and sold stem cells and stem cell injections to persons suffering from Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS or "Lou Gehrig’s Disease"), Multiple Sclerosis, and other chronic diseases. VAN ROOYEN and Brown claimed that their customersÂ’ diseases could be treated or cured through the use and injection of stem cells that were derived from umbilical cord blood. VAN ROOYEN and Brown charged customers between $10,000 and $32,000 USD for each treatment. VAN ROOYEN and Brown injected each customer in the abdomen with 1.5 million stem cells regardless of their disease. The stem cells acquired by VAN ROOYEN and Brown were solely intended for use in laboratory research on animals and were never intended to be used on humans. VAN ROOYEN and Brown misled their customers by convincing them that the treatments would cure their diseases. VAN ROOYEN and Brown received at least $1.2 million USD in proceeds from this scheme, which they took from Biomark and transferred to their own personal joint bank account.