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KEY POINTS
- Belle Gibson was fined $410,000 for making false medical claims and fraudulent donation claims in 2017.
- Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan says the state’s consumer watchdog continues to pursue her.
- There has been renewed interest in Gibson’s case following the release of a new series.
Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan says the state’s consumer watchdog “won’t let up” in it’s pursuit of an outstanding $410,000 fine owed by cancer conwoman Belle Gibson.
The disgraced wellness guru — who lied about beating terminal brain cancer through health and wellness — to pay $410,000 for making and profiting from false medical claims and fraudulent donation claims.
By 2020 that had grown to more than $500,000 including penalties and interest by 2020, with her Northcote home raided twice in a bid to seize items to sell and settle the debt — which Gibson has previously claimed she was unable to repay.
Gibson has recently returned to headlines following the release of Netflix series , which explores her rise and fall.
Allan was asked on Thursday if there was anything more the Victorian government could do to get her to pay up.
“Behind the TV stories, behind the dramatisation are real people who have been had their lives devastated by the actions of this individual,” Allan told reporters.
“Consumer Affairs Victoria is continuing to pursue this, particularly in the context of the orders that have been made by the court.
“There are fines outstanding and Consumer Affairs Victoria is pursuing this constantly and consistently and won’t let up.”
Consumer Affairs Victoria told Melbourne’s The Age newspaper on Tuesday it continued to pursue Gibson. SBS News has contacted the consumer watchdog for comment.
What happened to Belle Gibson?
In August 2013, Gibson launched The Whole Pantry, a book and website in which she claimed dieting had cured her condition.
Gibson signed a publishing deal with Penguin for a cookbook shortly after, and The Whole Pantry tabletop book was released in late 2014.
As Gibson’s public profile soared, she claimed to have donated 25 per cent of her company’s profits to charity.
But her story began to unravel as news articles emerged alleging that she had lied about both her charitable donations and health status.
In April 2015, Gibson admitted she had never had cancer.
Although she didn’t face criminal charges, Consumer Affairs Victoria sued Gibson in the Federal Court in 2016 for engaging in misleading and deceptive conduct and unconscionable conduct in breach of Australian consumer law.
