Fake cosmetologist facing homicide charge in fatal botched butt lift
Police say two women brought Maxine Messam to a Bronx hospital in her BMW and claimed they had found her outside a cemetery
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A New York woman posing as a cosmetologist has been arrested for allegedly killing a Connecticut woman with dodgy silicone injections.
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Fake cosmetologist facing homicide charge in fatal botched butt lift Back to video
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Maxine Messam, 53, of Bridgeport, Conn., was dumped half-naked and unconscious outside Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx after receiving back-alley butt injections nearly five years ago.
Alicia Leslie, 47, of Mount Vernon, N.Y., was arrested on Oct. 16, the New York Daily News reported.
She faces charges of criminally negligent homicide and unauthorized practice of a profession.
Leslie, also known as “Toya,” injected Messam with a “silicone substance,” according to the criminal complaint obtained by the outlet.
What happened that fateful day?
Police said two women were seen arriving at the hospital in the victim’s BMW.
They then pulled Messam — who was naked from the waist down and reportedly had needle marks all over her body — from the vehicle and loaded her onto a gurney. The women claimed to be Good Samaritans, telling hospital staff they found Messam outside a local cemetery in the same condition.
The pair then left the hospital, where Messam was pronounced dead. Hospital staff called 911 shortly after her death.
It is unclear whether the other woman is facing charges.
Denies the accusations
Leslie was released without bail last week after being arraigned in Bronx Criminal Supreme Court.
Her lawyer, Kyle Watters, told the Daily News that his client denies the allegations.
“She looks forward to her day in court,” Watters said. “I’m confident she’ll be exonerated because she didn’t do anything wrong.”
Police said Leslie, who is married with kids and owns an interstate trucking company, has multiple prior arrests, including for grand larceny, petty larceny and possession of stolen property.
She is due back in court Nov. 4.
Messam is survived by her husband, two daughters and a son.
—With files from Brad Hunter
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