In before the people who are in after me.
DOJ began investigating a doctor promoting unproven COVID-19 treatments after a Roger Stone associate accidentally emailed a federal prosecutor instead of the doctor
Jerome Corsi, a far-right conspiracy theorist and close associate of the longtime GOP strategist Roger Stone, wanted to email Vladimir “Zev” Zelenko, a New York doctor who frequently appears on Fox News and has communicated with the White House about using hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for coronavirus.
But instead of Zelenko, Corsi accidentally emailed Aaron Zelinsky, a federal prosecutor who worked on the former special counsel Robert Mueller’s team and spent months investigating Corsi and others, The Washington Post reported Friday.
Zelinsky responded to Corsi’s email by reaching out to Corsi’s lawyer and asking for all of Corsi’s communications with Zelenko, according to The Post. The Justice Department is now investigating all of Zelenko’s communications.
Zelinsky works at the US attorney’s office in Maryland which, along with US attorneys’ offices, has been tasked with prioritizing cases related to coronavirus misinformation, fraudsters, and people who promote fake, dangerous, or unproven treatments for the virus. The Justice Department is reportedly scrutinizing Zelenko’s communications as part of that mandate.
Corsi said he and Zelenko are working together on a website that will connect people with doctors. He added that he and Zelenko have acted properly and he will cooperate with the inquiry. Corsi handed over all his communications with the doctor, including text messages, podcast materials, and marketing materials for the website.
The Post reported that Corsi revealed details of the email mix-up on an episode of his daily podcast and in a YouTube video he posted late Thursday after the paper reached out to him.
Zelenko frequently promotes hydroxychloroquine as a treatment for coronavirus. It is an effective anti-malarial drug, but despite being repeatedly touted by President Donald Trump as a potential cure for the virus, there’s no robust evidence that it would work.