Ever lied about being diagnosed with a fatal disease like cancer? Not likely, right? Well, this was not the case with Melbourne-based wellness influencer, Belle Gibson, aka Annabelle Natalie Gibson. Her story to followers on social media was no less than a scam. Gibson claimed to have had only four months to live, but she cured her inoperable brain cancer through healthy eating. Gibson seemed to sell her recipe for a miraculous cancer-free lifestyle, all the while giving people false promises.
A health blogger, Gibson, was found guilty by an Australian court after it was proven that she lied about curing her cancer through her healthy diet. Here are five unknown facts about Gibson who was accused of misleading the public.
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Gibson's wellness empire
Gibson's wellness business featured a mobile app called The Whole Pantry, a website, and a recipe book of the same name, all of which she debuted in 2013. A user on Twitter wrote, "Wow, Belle Gibson….how can anyone think up and do so much damage to vulnerable cancer sufferers? Just beyond belief."
Gibson has a child
Belle Gibson has an 11-year-old son, Olivier Corbett, who lives with her along with a man named Clive who was rumored to be her husband, as per MamaMia. But when pressed about her living situation in court in 2019, Gibson was adamant she and Clive were not in a relationship.
She even lied about her age
In 2015, the editor of Australian Women’s Weekly, obtained Gibson’s legal birth certificate from her mother which confirmed her date of birth to be October 8, 1991. Gibson even lied about her age, since corporate filings relating to her business contracts indicated she is three years younger than she publicly claims to be, according to the podcast 'Mix 102.3'.
When she was fined by Australian government
In September 2017, Belle was fined £240,000 (Approx $2,99,236) by the Australian government for misleading readers about donating money to charity, and having several diseases after she was found guilty of five breaches of consumer law.
Sports betting accounts
Prosecutors at the time began by telling the court that Gibson has maintained active cryptocurrency and sports betting accounts. However, Gibson didn't agree to provide a cryptocurrency statement because she “didn’t think that was an investment," as per MamaMia.
