THREAD: Ricardo de Sousa made millons selling cheap drones, neck massagers, and gadgets. He had a Ferrari with the plate "404 LOL.”

In Feb. he launched what would become arguably the internet’s biggest face mask profiteering operation. The secret? Email. https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/craigsilverman/coronavirus-mask-ads-were-emailed-to-millions-of-americans

As hospitals stuggled to find PPE and people realized the deadly threat posed by the coronavirus, than 1 billon emails like these hit inboxes.

“Protecting yourself and your family is vital!”

Millions were sent to American conservative email lists alone.

Other emails were entirely unsolicited. Ray Shell (pic), an American stage actor and author, received this message in early April. He knew it was spam but was anxious about #COVID19. So he payed $40 for two SafeMasks. (Respirators like these typically cost less than $1.)

How did SafeMask end up in so many emails? De Sousa offered a commission of +$20 per mask purchase to anyone who sent a customer to his payment sites. This attracted gun-for-hire affiliate marketers who use email blasts & other scuzzy tactics to get sales. The gold rush was on.

SafeMask promoters included 3 real estate flippers who run conservative email lists/sites like http://RepublicanPost.net , http://RightOnNews.com , http://LeapFrogAmerica.com . “Our team is highly engaged with conservative views, and it just is a great way to sell advertising," one said

De Sousa took his ecommerce marketing engine and applied it to masks, apparently with fabulous results for him. When his mask didn't arrive right away, Shell called the support line and was told "there's been such a demand for these masks that they are like a month behind."

So what mask are all of these people getting? That's a huge issue. This mask arrived for a customer in Canada. She paid close to $100 for 5. It appears to be certified according to European standards. OK, right? Well, no...

De Sousa provided this certificate showing the masks, made in Turkey, were certified for use/sale in Europe. But the French testing company named on the document believes "this certificate has not been issued by our services and that it is most likely a falsified document."

We also found:
-Customers said they were led to believe the mask was reusable; it's not.
-SafeMask sites displayed an N95 respirator image. But buyers were shipped something else.
-SafeMask sold European FFP2 respirators before they were approved for sale in the United States.

De Sousa did not comment on the allegedly forged mask cert when we asked via his lawyer. He blamed the misleading emails on rogue affiliate marketers. He said he does not condone spam. And he said he wasn't making much profit on the masks.

De Sousa's been in affiliate marketing since '08. His Twitter bio once said, "I make monies online." This pic of his car was his background. He's owned two Ferraris and a McLaren, and has companies in Estonia, the Seychelles, UAE, and Malta. In 2018, he made $6 million in profit.