Mother, daughter charged with murder after illegal butt injection procedure

A mother and daughter in California were arrested and charged with murder after they performed a botched butt injection procedure that resulted in a woman’s death, police said.

The incident happened in October 2019 but Libby Adame, 51, and her daughter, Alicia Galaz, 23, weren’t arrested until August, according to the Los Angeles Police Department. They were booked into jail on Aug. 5 and released after posting bond, online jail records show.

Galaz is scheduled to appear in court in December. A court date has not been set for Adame. It’s not clear if they have obtained attorneys.

The victim, Karissa Rajpaul, 26, died Oct. 15, 2019, in a hospital after she went to Adame and Galaz for what police described as an “outlaw buttocks augmentation procedure.”

“Shortly afterward, the victim died as a result,” a police spokesperson said.

Karissa Rajpaul.Detective Bob Dinlocker via KNBC

Rajpaul’s death is listed as a homicide due to acute cardiopulmonary dysfunction and intramuscular/intravascular silicone injections, according to the medical examiner’s office.

LAPD Det. Robert Dinlocker said Tuesday that Adame and Galaz performed three procedures on Rajpaul and she died following the third one. Police found no medical certification in California for either suspect and believe that neither had ever received any type of training.

The mother and daughter mostly advertised their services on social media and charged between $3,500 and $4,000 per session. Dinlocker said they would push their clients to receive a series of three sessions.

“These were uncontained silicone injections,” Dinlocker said. “They would go under the muscle so the butt would have that natural look but the problem is, according to the coroner’s office, you’ve got major arteries right below that muscle and it’s likely that when they do that they can strike an artery.”

After realizing that Rajpaul was in medical distress, Adame and Galaz called 911 and then left the home after paramedics arrived, the detective said.

Since news of the death, the police department has received “dozens and dozens” of calls from other victims. Many people have complained of suffering from infections, numbness, disfiguration and swelling after going to the mother and daughter for a butt injection procedure.

Dinlocker said additional charges are expected to be filed against Adame and Galaz. The detective said he hoped Rajpaul’s story will help others see the dangers in getting these illegal procedures.

“We’d like to get to the ears of these young ladies that are taking the selfies and posting stuff on Instagram and all these other social media sites, that these invasive procedures are deadly. Side effects and catastrophic incidents … are likely,” he said. “There’s no recourse, there’s no contingency, there’s no medical backup for these in-home procedures.”

source: nbcnews.com