Bleach as a ‘miracle cure’ for cancer? Authorities are investigating N.J. pastor’s medical claims to Ugandans.

A South Jersey pastor said to be distributing in Uganda a "miracle cure” drink containing industrial bleach says the concoction has natural power to cure serious diseases and “you just have to believe it.”

Robert Baldwin, 52, of Willingboro, landed in the international spotlight after reports that he operates a network of religious leaders abroad that monthly provides up to 50,000 Ugandans, including infants, with the bleach mixture, which experts say has no known health benefit. The U.S. government issued a warning in 2010 urging people to stop drinking the substance after a spike in its use here.

The network was uncovered by the Guardian in London, which reported this month that Baldwin has been exporting large shipments of MMS, or “miracle mineral solution,” to Uganda. A former British clergyman has been bankrolling Baldwin, according to the report.

In a brief interview this week, Baldwin said chlorine dioxide, used for stripping textile and industrial water treatment, can cure ailments such as cancer, HIV/AIDS, malaria, and other diseases. Baldwin said he promotes the drink as part of his ministry, the Global Healing Christian Missions.

“I want to get the truth out to people,” Baldwin said. “My beliefs as a Christian have to do with watching people suffer and die when they don’t have to.”

In an interview earlier this month with NJ Advance Media, Baldwin denied that he was personally responsible for distributing MMS in Uganda. He said his operations and social media accounts were temporarily shut down because of negative response.

Officials in Uganda have said the government plans to investigate the alleged distribution of MMS by Baldwin’s group. The U.S. Embassy in Kampala has denounced the distribution of MMS in Uganda and issued a warning about its dangers.

“We strongly condemn the distribution of this substance, which is extremely dangerous and is NOT a cure for any disease,” the embassy said in a statement.

Amazon.com on Wednesday announced that it had pulled from its inventory several books that promote MMS as a cure for autism and cancer. A spokesperson declined further comment.

The New Jersey Department of Consumer Affairs is looking into allegations of possible fraud by Baldwin because of the published reports, said spokesperson Lisa Coryell. Baldwin’s ministry is not a registered charity with the state, she said.

“We’re just looking into them at this point,” she said.

A spokesperson for the state Attorney General’s Office declined to comment on a possible criminal investigation.

Sam Little, 25, a former British clergyman who donated $10,000 to Baldwin’s network, was arrested in Uganda last week on suspicion of “intoxicating the public,” according to the Guardian. Two Ugandans were also arrested.

Authorities seized exhibits including liquids during the arrests, the Guardian said. Little conducted a “trial” on nine patients at a Ugandan hospital and later claimed in a video that it proved that malaria could be cured within two hours by using chlorine dioxide, the news organization said.

Baldwin is the founder and president of Global Healing Christian Missions, a nonprofit that has worked with churches, mostly in Uganda. He said he believes the federal government suppresses natural health remedies to boost profits for pharmaceutical companies.

“It’s connected to my ministry. I believe that God already provides natural healing,” Baldwin said. “You just to have to believe it.”

Ugandans, many devout Christians who live in extreme poverty, are vulnerable to phony missionary schemes, said Jonathan Bonk, director of the Dictionary of African Christian Biography and a faculty member at the Center for Global Christianity and Mission at Boston University. Many lack adequate health care and likely would willingly try a “miracle cure,” he said.

“They would really like to be healed just like in Jesus’ day,” Bonk said. “When people offer to heal them, they will listen.”

Baldwin said that he is not ordained and does not have a church. He said his online ministry mostly operates in Europe and Africa. Because of recent backlash, he said, he was forced to disable his website and social media accounts, which were reactivated this week.

During a phone interview with a Fiona O’Leary, a campaigner in Ireland against MMS, Baldwin said he set up his operation through the church to avoid drawing attention, the Guardian said. “You have to do it low-key,” he was quoted as saying.

Baldwin declined to provide details about his background or ministry to The Inquirer. He said he was seeking legal advice and planned to issue a statement soon.

In a text Wednesday, Baldwin sent a “MMS Facts” sheet and again stated his belief that chlorine dioxide is not poisonous.

“We should no longer stay silent and watch our loved ones die. This industry only benefits the few elite, rich at the expense and suffering of the millions,” Baldwin wrote.

There is little in the public record about Baldwin. Several clergy members in Willingboro said they were not familiar with him or his ministry. Baldwin’s website said his group seeks to educate the church in developing countries to use health treatments to care for the sick.

Baldwin lives in a rented three-bedroom rancher in the township’s Buckingham Park section. The home’s owner, Stephanie Price, declined to comment, saying only that Baldwin was her tenant.

According to public records, Baldwin previously had ties to Detroit and its suburb of Redford, where he was the agent listed for several businesses. He trained as a student nurse but has no other medical experience, the Guardian said.

According to the Guardian, Baldwin trained about 1,200 Christian clerics in Uganda to administer the “miracle cure,” usually after Sunday services to church members, some as young as 14 months old. Baldwin offered smartphones to clerics as an incentive, the newspaper said.

It appears that the network distributed the bleach free of charge, the Guardian said. It was unknown how much money the network raised. Baldwin’s group seeks online donations.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warned consumers in 2010 against using the bleach solution, saying it could cause serious health problems, including severe nausea, vomiting, and low blood pressure. The FDA said it was “not aware of any research that MMS is effective” in treating any of the conditions it is said to aid. MMS is banned in Ireland and Canada.

Jeremy Kahn, an FDA spokesperson, declined comment Wednesday on whether the agency would seek civil or criminal enforcement action against Baldwin.

Staff writer Mark Fazlollah contributed to this article.