Belle Gibson Belle Gibson was born on October 8th, 1991.
She lived an ordinary Australian life.
However, something flipped, like a switch in her mind, that drove her to become one
of the biggest liars and scammers in recent memory.
She told the world she had cancer and profited from a wellness app she claimed kept her alive.
But, when the charade came crashing down, Gibson finally had to face the consequences
for her web of deceit, and the Apple Watch may be culpable in the whole thing.
Early Life Gibson left her family home at 12 to live
with a classmate and eventually moved in with a family friend.
She attended Wynnum State High school in Queensland until she dropped out in the 10th grade.
She would later claim that she was homeschooled.
At 18, Gibson had a son, and with no real information as to who the father is, we imagine
the thought of being a single mother drove her to pursue financial gains by any means
necessary.
According to the Daily Mail, a man named Clive Rothwell has been acting as the child's stepfather
since he was born.
Belle, however, claims to know very little about him, even though he's been funding her
lifestyle for the past few years.
After dropping out of school, Gibson worked for a catering company, perhaps an honest
living to care for her child.
Her coworkers described Gibson as a lost soul, saying that she appeared disturbed and always
told some really vivid stories.
Her colleagues there remember her as not having any family or friends to hang out with, and
they also recall her talking about cancer way before she officially announced she had
it.
4 Years Turning 18 was a bitter-sweet moment for Gibson,
but that's if everything we know so far is genuine.
The same year her son was born, in 2009, Gibson was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor.
The whole cancer story had different versions, and any keen person would have noticed some
discrepancies as soon as it came out.
Hiding behind her pretty face, fashionably tattooed body, and a dazzling smile, the dots
didn't add app every time Gibson narrated her tragic journey.
After going public, Gibson became a media star.
In interviews, she claimed to have suffered from malignant brain, blood, spleen, uterine,
liver, and kidney cancers.
With a few years left to live, Gibson felt scared for herself and her newborn son.
She went on the offensive, claiming that a cervical cancer vaccine called Gardasil gave
her cancer.
Fast forward to November 2014, when her inspirational book, The Whole Pantry, told yet another version
of her diagnosis.
In the preface of the cookbook, Gibson claimed that her cancer had gone into remission and
that no new cells had grown.
It was all thanks to the dietary plans laid out in the pages to come.
However, months before the book came out, Gibson posted that her cancer had spread,
reaching her kidneys and liver on her social media pages.
Then, in a horrible twist of fate, her cancer moved to her brain, blood, spleen, and uterus.
While her cancer, if real, could have spread that rapidly, it didn't line up with the timeline
and "facts" laid out in her book.
Whole Pantry With star status as a relentless cancer fighter,
it was now time for Gibson to start making the most out of her situation.
The Whole Pantry app officially launched, and it launched with a bang.
The health, wellness, and lifestyle app received a glorious reception, recording some 300,000
downloads, each downloading costing $3.79.
The app was so successful that Apple, yes, the one and only Steve Jobs-founded Apple,
flew her to California to launch the Apple Watch.
Apple was so infatuated with Gibson's story that The Whole Pantry App came pre-installed
on Apple Watches.
The Whole Pantry book was published by Penguin Books and would later be sold in Ireland,
Britain, and the US.
The launch of the app and the book left Gibson feeling like a star.
She amassed over 200,000 followers on Instagram and treated them to endless inspirational
quotes such as, "stop waiting for Friday, for summer, for someone to fall in love with
you for life"—her unsuspecting fans and the online community fell for her empty quotes.
The Whole Pantry app was voted the best food and drink app in 2013.
By early 2015, Gibson had raked in over $1 Million between app and book sales.
Alternative Medicine Through her platforms, Gibson introduced and
preached alternatives to curing cancer.
She advocated for exercise, healthy eating, and a positive mindset which, to her credit,
are all things we should strive to do with our lives.
However, to say that they'll "cure cancer" is a gross overstatement.
On her now-deleted Instagram account with hundreds of thousands of followers, Gibson
consistently promoted more controversial or potentially dangerous alternative medical
practices, including Gerson therapy—which is basically a dietary-based cancer treatment.
She also advocated for anti-vaccination and consumption of unpasteurized raw milk.
In Australia, the sale of raw milk is illegal in all territories, showing that Gibson was
blatantly ignoring her government's directive by preaching the gospel of raw milk consumption.
In 2015, a 4-year-old kid identified as Apu Khangura died of hemolytic urinemic syndrome.
Seven others became seriously ill due to raw milk consumption, prompting the Australian
government to put tougher regulations.
Blow Up Gibson's public display of a depleted, sickly,
and soon-dying person came with some goodies.
Amazingly, nobody questioned her good looks, especially for someone dying from six different
cancers.
Avocado is good for you, but it's not THAT good for you!
The deals with world-recognized brands like Apple and Penguin left more questions than
answers.
Gibson made millions, flew first class, and attended international conventions, but what
does that say about the due diligence on the side of her sponsors?
Apple helped take Gibson's public mockery and lie to international levels by gobbling
up her lies without confirming them.
The tech giant boosted Gibson's public profile and credibility by including The Whole Pantry
app in their Apple Watch prototype.
Penguin did the same by granting Gibson an international cookbook deal; the two companies,
therefore, failed the public and should take part of the blame for the roles they played.
Isn't it fair to say that Apple and Penguin failed to do due diligence, thereby unknowingly
aiding and abetting the crimes and forgery conducted by Gibson?
What is your take?
Let us know in the Comment section below.
More Fabrications
Gibson claimed that she had undergone heart surgery several times and even died momentarily
on the operating table—a story that attracted honest tears from those who sympathized with
her.
Still, as it turns out, these were just more lies—nothing genuine.
Gibson also revealed in her previous interviews that during such trying times, she suffered
a stroke.
However, the mother of one wasn't able to substantiate all these medical claims or mention
the names of the doctors who diagnosed and treated her.
Moreover, the pretty lady didn't bear a single mark of surgical scars from her 'several'
operations.
The hoax was beginning to crack.
Victims Desperate times call for desperate measures,
and Gibson's story touched the hearts of people around the world that were battling cancer.
They bought hope in the form of her app and cookbook, never thinking for a moment that
Gibson could be making it all up.
Why would she?
Why would someone lie about that?
One such person is a girl named Maxine.
When she was in high school, she was diagnosed with ulcerative colitis.
Doctors put her on medication, which left her with the usual side effects.
But when she saw Gibson's story, she felt relieved; she thought to herself, why not?
So, Maxine abandoned medication and started following Gibson's tips.
Pixie Turner is another victim who fell for Gibson's rhetoric.
She tried medication but later joined Gibson's online wellness community.
Both Maxine and Pixie were among the first members of Gibson's wellness program.
But soon, Richard Guilliatt, a journalist and researcher on cancer ailments and treatment,
noticed something wasn't adding up with Gibson, her app, and the message she relayed to her
fans.
In February 2015, Richard met Gibson in Melbourne while she was promoting her book.
During their interview, Gibson found it hard to answer some of Richard's questions and
instead diverted into some far-fetched explanations.
When he asked about her most recent cancers, Belle took him on a roller-coaster of an answer.
Ultimately, she said she was no longer seeing that doctor and was unsure whether or not
she had these cancers.
While Richard wasn't able to prove she was lying beyond a shadow of a doubt, he could
speculate.
He writes about his interview with Belle, and it spreads wide and far across the internet,
like a virus… like a cancer.
Fake Donations Gibson's story attracted split opinions.
With new revelations and contradictory stories popping up with every single interview, thousands
of her followers were hit by a cast of doubt.
Yet, others still chose to believe her.
But the last nail on the coffin would be her failure to deliver the $300,000 donation she
promised to give to charity.
She also claimed that she gave away 25 percent of her company's profits and, in her book,
wrote that a large part of everything she earned was donated to charitable causes.
In December 2013, Gibson held a fundraiser in Melbourne to raise money for three charities.
One Girl, which runs education programs in Sierra Leone, was listed by Gibson as one
of the beneficiary charities, but the organization didn't receive a dime after the fundraiser,
and she only donated $1,000 after media inquiries following a 15-month wait.
Another Asian-based foundation also said they never received a penny from Gibson after she
told the media she'd given them $2,800.
Declaration Gibson's boat was sinking.
It was time to go down with the ship, or come clean about her life-long fraud.
In 2016, Gibson revealed that none of her cancers were true.
She told Australian Women's, a weekly magazine, that she didn't want forgiveness.
She believed people would hear her revelation and think, "It's okay, she's only human."
Her admission, as expected, attracted unwavering backlash from her followers.
They felt betrayed and had every right to.
Gibson had touted unbacked claims that holistic medicine had kept her cancer at bay.
In reality, there was never any cancer to begin with.
For those who were really suffering, the damage had already been done.
There's no telling how their cancers had worsened since abandoning their doctors and putting
their faith in Belle.
Millions of people faulted her for putting the lives of cancer patients in danger by
suggesting dietary approaches and telling them to abandon scientific methods.
Aftermath In September 2017, Gibson was fined $410,000
for making false claims about her donations to charity.
As recently as April 2019, she has not settled the fine, and authorities have been hot on
her tail, hoping to charge her with contempt of court.
Later in 2019, Gibson claimed to be $170,000 in debt and only had $5,000 to her name.
In January 2020, Gibson's home was raided, and the authorities seized some of her items
in an attempt to recoup the unpaid fines, which by then, due to interest and costs,
had exceeded half a million dollars.
Her home was raided again in May 2021 with the same intention.
A day after the first raid on her home, Gibson appeared on a video claiming to have been
adopted by the Ethiopian community in Melbourne and even partly introduced herself in the
indigenous Oromo dialect.
She referred to the adoption as a gift from Allah.
But in a quick retort, the president of the Australian Oromo Community said that Gibson
wasn't a registered member nor a volunteer.
He was well aware of Belle's past and didn't want anything to do with her.
Do you think Gibson's next venture is to defraud the Ethiopian community in Melbourne, or is
she genuinely transformed?
But the thought that we can't shake is how a company like Apple could have been so easily
duped.
Did they bite down on Gibson's "story" with nothing but dollar signs in their eyes?
Is Gibson's story, more than anything, a comment on corporate greed?
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