A federal judge has sentenced a woman described as a fake doctor who worked in four states to more than six years in prison.

U.S. District Judge Madeline Hughes Haikala imposed the sentence Tuesday on 61-year-old Isabel Kesari Gervais.

Authorities say Gervais described herself as a naturopathic doctor but wasn’t licensed. A statement from prosecutors says she claimed to use naturopathic medicine to cure illnesses including cancer.

Gervais pleaded guilty last year to defrauding patients at a clinic in suburban Birmingham, Alabama.

In her plea agreement she acknowledged operating multiple offices over 15 years in Montgomery, Alabama; Springdale, Arkansas; metro Atlanta; and Leawood, Kansas.

Investigators determined Gervais moved frequently and used aliases including Rose Starr and Debra Lynn Goodman to avoid detection. She had been in Hoover, Alabama, since 2015.

(Associated Press, copyright 2018)
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