Miami Surgeon Botches Multiple Procedures, Retains Medical License To Dismay Of Victims

Early this month, a Miami surgeon specializing in the Brazilian Butt Lift (BBL) was convicted of medical malpractice, yet his many victims are appalled that he is still allowed to practice medicine. The Florida administrative law judge recommended two years of probation, a reprimand for medical violations, and $14,000 in fines, in addition to court fees.

Dr. Osak Omulepu first made headlines in May of 2015, when he was accused of botching four anonymous women’s surgeries. Omulepu primarily performs the BBL, a cosmetic procedure in which a surgeon liposuctions fat from the stomach and injects it into the buttocks.

When the state made the first complaint nearly two years ago, they issued an emergency order barring Omulepu from continuing to perform the procedure. The four women in the original complaint all had the surgery within a three day period, and all experienced extensive complications such as infections, nerve damage and internal perforations which required hospitalization.

With two of the women, Omulepu was accused of “repeatedly tearing the patients’ internal organs, including the liver and small intestine, causing severe blood infections and, in one case, acute kidney failure and respiratory failure.” One of the women said that, while the procedure itself cost only $6,000 including travel and fees, she now owes $60,000 in medical bills for care that she received from complications of the original surgery.

Another woman, Nyosha Fowler, who revealed her identity a few months later and testified in court, spent 28 days in a coma after the procedure. Fowler, the mother of two boys, had traveled from out o state to have the surgery. She told the court that when she woke up, Omulepu “said ‘I messed up, I messed up, that’s all I can say is I messed up’.” The judge’s decision elaborated, saying the doctor “suggested that his instrument cuts through muscle and fat like butter and may have contributed to the perforation.”

Both the women who testified in court and the anonymous victims say that when they tried to contact Omulepu about their medical complications, he had disappeared. A 28-year-old student from Texas State University said, “I could be dead for all he knows. He doesn’t know anything about me.” Another said she felt “damaged. They sold me all these dreams, and then it’s like when things go wrong, they’re nowhere to be found.”

Omulepu called in another surgeon, Dr. Michel Samson, to testify on his behalf. He told the courts, “Unfortunately these things happen.” Omulepu attracted patients to his practice through a YouTube channel where he posts graphic videos of himself performing the surgery and an Instagram where he shared pictures of women’s bodies, scantily covered by emojis, before and after the BBL.

The victims had been hoping that Omulepu’s medical license would be revoked entirely and are disappointed with the judge’s leniency in sentencing probation. “I guess some justice feels better than not justice at all,” said Fowler.

Medical malpractice can have devastating effects that last a lifetime. If you have been injured by a physician’s neglect, attorneys Charles Gilman and Briggs Bedigian will work to get you the full compensation to which you are entitled. Call 800-529-6162 today or contact them online for a free case evaluation. They handle cases in Maryland, Pennsylvania, and Washington, D.C.