A California doctor has been accused of selling fake Covid immunization pellets and vaccine cards, the U.S. Department of Justice said, NBC News reported.

The doctor, Juli Mazi, of Napa, was arrested and charged with wire fraud and false statements related to health care, according to a criminal complaint.

Mazi, a homeopathic doctor, allegedly told patients that her homeoprophylaxis immunization pellets contained "a very minute amount" of the Covid-19 virus and that by taking them they would develop a "full lifelong immunity," the Justice Department said in a press release.

Mazi encouraged her patients to buy the pellets by falsely telling them that the Food and Drug Administration-approved vaccines contained "toxic ingredients," according to prosecutors. Customers who purchased the pellets were given a Covid vaccination card and were instructed to fill it out so it appeared as if they received both doses of the Moderna shot, the release and complaint state.

The agency said this is the first US federal criminal fraud prosecution related to fake immunizations and vaccine record cards.

At least one person purchased the pellets for $243. Financial records showed that between January 2020 and May 2021, Mazi received over $221,000 in transactions, the criminal complaint states. Twenty-five of those transactions noted they were for coronavirus treatments.

Authorities began their investigation in April after someone contacted the Department of Health and Human Services Office of the Inspector General and said that their family members had purchased immunization pellets from Mazi.

If convicted, Dr. Juli Mazi faces up to 20 years in prison for wire fraud and five for making false statements.