Eduard Yusupov, Diana Fuzailov, of Wading River, get reduced sentences in sex pill scheme

A Wading River couple received reduced sentences Friday in federal court in Central Islip, after they admitted to illegally selling more than $3.6 million in sexual enhancement supplements that they falsely said were all natural and approved by the Food and Drug Administration.

U.S. District Judge Joanna Seybert sentenced Eduard Yusupov, 43, to 1 year and 1 day in federal prison — far less than the 3 years recommended by federal probation officers — along with 2 years of supervised release and a $5,000 fine. He will report to prison Nov. 3.

His wife, Diana Fuzailov, 35, received 3 years supervised probation and a $15,000 fine after Seybert acknowledged her role in the scheme was less than Yusupov's.

As part of the plea agreement, the pair each agreed to forfeit more than $1.8 million. To date, their attorneys said, they've turned over a combined $200,000 after selling some property, Seybert said.

Yusupov's attorney, Jonathan Kaye of Queens, sought home confinement for his client, arguing that he is the primary caregiver for the couple's three children, two of whom have special needs.

"I am 100% at fault," Yusupov told Seybert, holding back tears and asking the judge to show leniency to his wife.

Yusupov has two prior federal felony convictions. In 2005, he admitted selling, along with his brother and father, more than $9.5 million in counterfeit cash and conspiring to sell counterfeit DVDs. In 2008, he was convicted by a jury for again selling counterfeit money. He was sentenced to 4 years in federal prison for those prior offenses.

Fuzailov, who has no prior convictions, is a licensed social worker with scoliosis and donated a kidney to her mother several years ago, according to her attorney, Samuel Eliceo Manrique of Manhattan.

"I am sorry," she said. "I have since learned from my mistakes. I can assure you I won't make that mistake again."

Seybert expressed sympathy for Fuzailov, adding that she hopes the state does not rescind her license as a social worker.

The couple, which operated an online business — Love Potion Inc. — between July 2016 and February 2022, said they mixed pills purchased predominantly from China containing sildenafil citrate, the active ingredient in Viagra, into capsules marketed as all-natural supplements and sold them to unknowing customers from around the country.

The pills included a female-marketed capsule called "Kangaroo" and a male-targeted capsule labeled "Rhino," that the company said promoted "heightened sexual function."

Yusupov and Fuzailov each pleaded guilty in August to introduction of misbranded drugs into interstate commerce and wire fraud.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Justina Geraci told the court that Yusupov and Fuzailov marketed their products as FDA-approved, and their website and packaging materials did not list ingredients.

Testing, however, showed the product — colored pills with a powdery substance inside — contained the presence of undeclared pharmaceutical ingredients, including sildenafil citrate.

Fuzailov and Yusupov admitted that while some of their products were marketed as FDA-approved, they were not.

As part of the investigation, federal agents made purchases of the products, which they had shipped to a Massachusetts laboratory for testing.

Geraci called the scheme "insidious" while Seybert noted that there could be countless unknown victims who suffered medical issues after taking pills they believed to be natural and federally approved.

"This was not some nickel and dime operation," Seybert said.

By Robert Brodsky

robert.brodsky@newsday.com@BrodskyRobert

Robert Brodsky is a breaking news reporter who has worked at Newsday since 2011. He is a Queens College and American University alum.