Alfred T. Sapse, Phony Stem Cell Case, Nevada 2012

Las Vegas, NV – In a shocking turn of events, Alfred T. Sapse, 87, a Las Vegas resident, has been sentenced to 17½ years in federal prison for his role in a phony stem cell case, announced Daniel G. Bogden, United States Attorney for the District of Nevada.

Sapse was convicted by a jury in November 2012 of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, seven counts of mail fraud, and 11 counts of wire fraud. He was sentenced by Senior U.S. District Judge Kent J. Dawson, and was immediately remanded to federal custody.

The scheme, which took place from January 2005 to current, involved Sapse convincing chronically ill patients to undergo experimental implant procedures and convincing investors to pay him large amounts of money without knowing the short- or long-term effects of the implant procedures he promoted.

According to the superseding indictment and evidence introduced by the government at trial, Sapse, who purports to be a retired foreign physician but who has never been licensed to practice medicine in Nevada or any other state, targeted extremely sick patients by claiming that his ‘proprietary’ procedure was especially effective for patients with multiple sclerosis, cerebral palsy, and retinitis pigmentosa.

Sapse hired pediatrician Ralph M. Conti, M.D, of Henderson to perform the procedures, resulting in the infection of at least two patients. The FDA sent Sapse and Conti a warning letter explaining that their procedure violated federal law, but they continued to perform the procedures, making false representations to prospective patients and investors.

Sapse failed to obtain any approvals from the FDA prior to coordinating the implantation of placental cells in patients by Conti. He and Conti made false representations to FDA regulatory investigators regarding their involvement in the scheme.

As part of the sentence, Sapse was ordered to pay approximately $1 million in restitution.

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