NYCe
03-10-2008, 03:32 AM
http://www.nypost.com/seven/03092008/news/regionalnews/rear_and_present_danger_101008.htm
March 9, 2008 -- A shady Atlanta businesswoman armed with a gallon jug of silicone and syringes is offering to inject women seeking "J.Lo butts" in a Manhattan hotel room - an illegal and potentially lethal cosmetic treatment.
"I need to see your butt," Kimberly Smedley told a Post reporter posing as a customer last week in a suite at the Eastgate Tower Hotel on East 39th Street.
Smedley, a heavyset woman wearing camouflage pants and fake Ugg boots, then demanded $1,600 in cash to give nine injections to each cheek.
Sitting on a coffee table was a Poland Spring jug, which she claimed contained "medical-grade silicone," along with a syringe and cotton balls.
"It's illegal," she said. "I'm not a doctor, and I'm not a nurse."
Smedley, 41, has two shoplifting convictions in Georgia, where she drives an Infiniti and lives in a handsome brick estate in a neighborhood of half-million-dollar homes. The Post learned about Smedley from a Harlem beautician in her late 20s who said that Smedley visits New York every few weeks and that she has injected several friends.
The woman said she paid $1,000 in 2006 for silicone butt injections, which she received in a Midtown hotel room crammed with at least 10 other women, many of them strippers, seeking the treatment.
When it was her turn, the woman lay face down on a couch, in view of the others, while Smedley gave her about 10 shots on each side.
"I wanted a J.Lo butt - full, round and high," the woman said.
The injections gave her the "lift" she wanted - at first. But now she is seeing doctors for many hard lumps, ripples and skin discolorations that have developed on her rear.
"I don't know what's happening inside me," she said. "I'm scared for my life."
Law-enforcement authorities say anyone who is not an MD or authorized health-care worker and injects such substances can be charged with practicing medicine without a license - a felony in New York punishable by up to four years in prison.
Illegal silicone treatments have killed people whose injections hit a vein, causing blood clots, experts warn.
When injected into the body, silicone gets trapped in surrounding tissue that becomes inflamed and possibly infected, said Dr. Dennis Barek, a Great Neck plastic surgeon and medical coordinator for the state Office of Professional Medical Conduct. It's extremely difficult to remove without causing unsightly holes and scarring, he said.
Medical silicone, which is sterile, is sold in the United States only to doctors but can be obtained from foreign countries, Barek said. The Food and Drug Administration approves its use to treat detached retinas but not for cosmetic purposes.
Reputable plastic surgeons insert butt implants or do fat transfers - procedures costing $5,000 to $10,000 each, Barek said, calling the illicit injections, in comparison, "dirt cheap."
Experts also fear that criminal providers use industrial-grade silicone, which is widely available as lubricants or sealants - and may contain toxic contaminants.
On Tuesday, after a series of text messages to her cellphone, Smedley, who identified herself as "Kim," invited the reporter to meet her at the hotel that night, explaining that she'd spent the day in New Jersey.
Inside the suite, Smedley interrogated the reporter about the person who had referred her.
"I've got to be careful. I'm very discreet. You could be the cops or something," she said.
Smedley went on to explain the treatment, saying it takes about a half-hour. Afterward, the customer cannot sit for eight hours, she said.
She said she injects the silicone directly into the butt muscles.
"It's illegal here but legal in other counties, like Mexico," she claimed.
"It lasts forever."
Smedley said most of her customers, who include transsexuals, know the routine and don't question it.
"If you're not ready for this, don't do it. I don't want people calling me up and saying, 'I'm sick,' " she said.
"I can't tell you if you'll have scars or not. You have to know your own body. You need to be sure of what you're doing. I'm not promising anything."
When the reporter said she had just $1,000, Smedley offered to give her two $1,000 treatments a month apart. Or, she said, "I can do it all for $1,600 tonight."
Smedley later sent a text message, saying she would return to New York at the "end of March."
When The Post reached Smedley by phone on Friday, she acknowledged staying at the Eastgate Tower Hotel last week but denied offering silicone injections.
"Oh, no, I don't do that," she said.
March 9, 2008 -- A shady Atlanta businesswoman armed with a gallon jug of silicone and syringes is offering to inject women seeking "J.Lo butts" in a Manhattan hotel room - an illegal and potentially lethal cosmetic treatment.
"I need to see your butt," Kimberly Smedley told a Post reporter posing as a customer last week in a suite at the Eastgate Tower Hotel on East 39th Street.
Smedley, a heavyset woman wearing camouflage pants and fake Ugg boots, then demanded $1,600 in cash to give nine injections to each cheek.
Sitting on a coffee table was a Poland Spring jug, which she claimed contained "medical-grade silicone," along with a syringe and cotton balls.
"It's illegal," she said. "I'm not a doctor, and I'm not a nurse."
Smedley, 41, has two shoplifting convictions in Georgia, where she drives an Infiniti and lives in a handsome brick estate in a neighborhood of half-million-dollar homes. The Post learned about Smedley from a Harlem beautician in her late 20s who said that Smedley visits New York every few weeks and that she has injected several friends.
The woman said she paid $1,000 in 2006 for silicone butt injections, which she received in a Midtown hotel room crammed with at least 10 other women, many of them strippers, seeking the treatment.
When it was her turn, the woman lay face down on a couch, in view of the others, while Smedley gave her about 10 shots on each side.
"I wanted a J.Lo butt - full, round and high," the woman said.
The injections gave her the "lift" she wanted - at first. But now she is seeing doctors for many hard lumps, ripples and skin discolorations that have developed on her rear.
"I don't know what's happening inside me," she said. "I'm scared for my life."
Law-enforcement authorities say anyone who is not an MD or authorized health-care worker and injects such substances can be charged with practicing medicine without a license - a felony in New York punishable by up to four years in prison.
Illegal silicone treatments have killed people whose injections hit a vein, causing blood clots, experts warn.
When injected into the body, silicone gets trapped in surrounding tissue that becomes inflamed and possibly infected, said Dr. Dennis Barek, a Great Neck plastic surgeon and medical coordinator for the state Office of Professional Medical Conduct. It's extremely difficult to remove without causing unsightly holes and scarring, he said.
Medical silicone, which is sterile, is sold in the United States only to doctors but can be obtained from foreign countries, Barek said. The Food and Drug Administration approves its use to treat detached retinas but not for cosmetic purposes.
Reputable plastic surgeons insert butt implants or do fat transfers - procedures costing $5,000 to $10,000 each, Barek said, calling the illicit injections, in comparison, "dirt cheap."
Experts also fear that criminal providers use industrial-grade silicone, which is widely available as lubricants or sealants - and may contain toxic contaminants.
On Tuesday, after a series of text messages to her cellphone, Smedley, who identified herself as "Kim," invited the reporter to meet her at the hotel that night, explaining that she'd spent the day in New Jersey.
Inside the suite, Smedley interrogated the reporter about the person who had referred her.
"I've got to be careful. I'm very discreet. You could be the cops or something," she said.
Smedley went on to explain the treatment, saying it takes about a half-hour. Afterward, the customer cannot sit for eight hours, she said.
She said she injects the silicone directly into the butt muscles.
"It's illegal here but legal in other counties, like Mexico," she claimed.
"It lasts forever."
Smedley said most of her customers, who include transsexuals, know the routine and don't question it.
"If you're not ready for this, don't do it. I don't want people calling me up and saying, 'I'm sick,' " she said.
"I can't tell you if you'll have scars or not. You have to know your own body. You need to be sure of what you're doing. I'm not promising anything."
When the reporter said she had just $1,000, Smedley offered to give her two $1,000 treatments a month apart. Or, she said, "I can do it all for $1,600 tonight."
Smedley later sent a text message, saying she would return to New York at the "end of March."
When The Post reached Smedley by phone on Friday, she acknowledged staying at the Eastgate Tower Hotel last week but denied offering silicone injections.
"Oh, no, I don't do that," she said.