This is the American Greed Podcast presented by

C and B.C. I'm Stacy Keach.

In this episode of American Greed, Chad Livedol is a doctor who develops a Botox knockoff and distributes it to more than 200 physicians nationwide.

He had it in the palm of his hand to be worth 500 million dollars.

But his get-rich quick scheme collapses when four people nearly die of botulism poisoning.

They're sewing a toxin that could potentially... die of botulism poisoning.

They're sewing a toxin that could potentially hurt people, kill people,

paralyzed people.

It was terrifying.

I had botulism.

In other words, I'm dying. There's trouble brewing for four South Florida residents all fighting a mysterious illness the day after Thanksgiving.

It's November 26, 2004.

In Palm Beach Gardens, 52-year-old chiropractor Dr Eric Kaplan and his wife Bonnie feel like

they've caught a severe flu that's growing stronger by the hour. That evening Bonnie can barely move her arms or

legs or even breathe. It was like dying, you know I knew I was dying. I did. I knew I

was dying. I couldn't catch a breath. I knew they had to do something

Their son rushes them to the ER and that's when Bunny goes into cardiac arrest

Meaning they had to put the paddles on it to bring her back.

They knew we were in trouble, and they didn't know what the cause was.

I was scared.

Doctors placed Bonnie on life support,

and they do the same for Eric,

...