A doctor in New York was arrested after allegedly trying to convince women to go to the Dominican Republic to obtain cheap liposuction and plastic surgery, which left many of them disfigured.
Hector Cabral, 51, is not a licensed physician but has been recruiting patients since at least 1999. At that time, a singer from Manhattan had reported that he performed liposuction on her and left her with an infection that almost cost her her life.
Cabral was not charged for the allegations back then but has recently been charged with four other cases.
According to officials, Cabral would go to salons and spas throughout New York City to attract potential clients. He targeted Upper Manhattan’s Washington Heights neighborhood, which is known to have a large Dominican community.
He would go as far as to bring a black marker with him and mark the bodies of the potential clients where he believed they needed liposuction or other cosmetic surgery.
With the pretense of cheap prices, he lured the women into flying to his office in the Dominican Republic to have the work done. Unfortunately, many of the women suffered from extensive pain, scarring and permanent disfigurement.
Cabral was arrested on Monday and charged with practicing while unauthorized.
According to Cabral’s housekeeper, Maria Jimenez, he did nothing wrong.
"I think all this is a big mistake -- he's a wonderful man," said Jimenez. "In the Dominican Republic, he's been a licensed doctor for almost 20 years. He went to France to get a degree in plastic surgery.”
Liposuction and all forms of cosmetic surgery have many risks associated with them. For this reason, it is imperative that potential plastic surgery patients do extensive research on their procedure and speak to Board Certified doctors who have years of successful experience in the field.
The better the reputation of a liposuction doctor, the better the patient’s chances of having minimal complications and exceptional results.
