Matthew J. Kawa of Grant Park, Illinois, and his sister Jennifer L. Stechkober of Michigan City, Indiana, were sentenced by United States District Court Judge Cristal C. Brisco after pleading guilty to introducing unapproved new drugs into interstate commerce with the intent to defraud and mislead, according to a July 22 announcement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Indiana. Kawa also pled guilty to illegally importing merchandise into the United States.
Kawa received a sentence of 70 months in prison followed by one year of supervised release, while Stechkober was sentenced to 16 months in prison followed by one year of supervised release. Both were ordered to pay $78,317.52 in restitution. The court entered a money judgment against Kawa totaling $5 million.
U.S. Attorney Adam L. Mildred said, “The owner of Paradigm Peptides and his accomplice have been held accountable, sentenced to prison, and ordered to pay restitution to the identified victims… What’s worse is that the two defendants fleeced an estimated 54,000 people out of over 5 million dollars… These customers trusted them and consumed the products in the hope of improving their health or physique and instead were poisoned with known and unknown substances that were illegally imported from China, India, and other countries.”
According to Mildred, “The Defendant operated a business called Paradigm Peptides that marketed products online… Through his website, the Defendant and his sister/accomplice illegally sold peptides [and] Selective Androgen Receptor Modulators (‘SARMs’), Human Chorionic Gonadotropin (‘HCG’), and other drugs for human consumption without approval from the Food and Drug Administration (‘FDA’)… In reality, the Defendant imported the products from Asia… It was later determined that many of the SARMs sold by Paradigm Peptides were actually testosterone.”
Mildred also said, “Kawa continued to sell these products online despite receiving letters in 2020 and 2022 from FDA warning him that he was marketing and selling unapproved drugs… From 2019 to 2024 he sold products to more than 54,000 customers… Several customers reported severe negative effects on their physical, psychological, and mental health after using the products.”
Special Agent in Charge Ronne Malham stated, “FDA will continue to investigate and hold accountable those who traffic in unapproved drugs.” Inspector in Charge Felicia B. George added, “Mr. Kawa and Ms. Stechkober eroded [the public’s] trust by distributing unsafe substances through USPS.” The case was investigated by FDA’s Office of Criminal Investigations as well as United States Postal Inspection Service.