A mum-of-two has tragically died after a man who allegedly posed a plastic surgeon on TikTok attempted to remove her butt implants in his New York home, according to police.
On March 28 Maria Penaloza, 31, had visited Felipe Hoyos-Foronda’s liposuction clinic in New York to have butt implants removed. Prosecutors allege that during the bungled operation the man, who claimed to be a doctor in Colombia, administered lidocaine to the victim through a syringe.
María went into cardiac arrest after the injection, according to a complaint filed in Queens Criminal Court. She was rushed by paramedics to Mount Sinai hospital, where she was listed in critical condition and later declared brain-dead, according to court documents.
Police in America are now saying 38-year-old Felipe Hoyos-Foronda was arrested last month after trying to flee to Colombia. Hoyos-Foronda allegedly performed the operation “without a license to do so and while not in a medical facility” on March 28, a criminal complaint from the Queens District Attorney’s Office says.
Emergency personnel were called to the apartment and Penaloza was taken to Astoria General Hospital where she was intubated and later showed “no brain activity,” prosecutors said. The doctor charged with treating Penaloza said she was exhibiting signs of “lidocaine toxicity” and added that she was “not likely to survive,” the complaint said.
Hoyos-Foronda was arrested after the botched surgery and was charged with second degree assault and unauthorized practice of profession, the NYPD told ABC News. He is currently being held at Otis Bantum Correctional Center in East Elmhurst, New York, according to custody reports.
“Whenever circumstances change in a case we re-examine the charges,” the DA’s office said about upgrading the charges after Peñaloza’s death. “This remains an active and ongoing investigation, and we cannot provide further comment.” Hoyos-Foronda is scheduled to appear in court on April 28.
María’s family and friends in both the US and Colombia are mourning her tragic death. Her sister said: “Maria was a very happy person, very family oriented. She always wanted to be around us at her home. We’d always spend the holidays at her place.”
Relatives explianed how María’s used to host Christmas at her home in Flushing, Queens. Her brother-in-law issud a heartbreaking tribute , writing on Facebook: “It’s never easy to say goodbye. Your absence hurts, but your memory is light. We keep every shared laugh, every gesture of love, every conversation that we now treasure,” reports The Sun.
María leaves behind her two sons, aged three and one.
A GoFundMe has been created to help support Peñaloza Cabrer’s family.
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