Woman jailed over ‘dodgy’ beauty shots

(CNS): A woman who claimed she was injecting her clients with beauty vitamins to help moisturize their skin has been jailed for five months after a court found she was more than likely injecting a type of silicone into their faces. Zunilda Anaya Baldovino, an unlicensed beauty therapist, was found guilty earlier this year of negligence after two of her customers suffered serious adverse effects from the treatment.

On Monday Magistrate Phillipa McFarlane handed down nine month concurrent terms for each of the offences, which she cut to five months. This was because of excessive delays in the case as a result of mismanagement of the investigation by the police and ongoing problems with disclosure before and during trial in a case that spanned almost three years from arrest to sentence.

The court heard that Baldovino, who is a Colombian national, had a previous conviction in 2015 for importing restricted pharmaceuticals but had been given a conditional discharge. But this time the magistrate found there were several aggravating factors, including the physical and psychological effect on the victims and the fact that Baldovino was working outside the terms of her work permit at the time, offering on the side cosmetic procedures for which she was not qualified or licensed to administer.

The magistrate said she believed the custody threshold had been passed, as she ordered the immediate term of imprisonment.

“A very clear message must be sent regarding the court’s attitude to this offending,” Magistrate McFarlane said. “You were not a licensed medical or healthcare practitioner and you administered a substance by injection in conditions which may not have been sterile from a location where you were not entitled to work. If that wasn’t bad enough, when you caused serious problems for the complainants, instead of advising them to go to hospital you suggested they use your creams.”

The magistrate noted that Baldovino had denied the allegations throughout, and instead of answering the charges, had given prepared statements. Through her defence counsel at trial, she had implied the problems the victims suffered were either as a result of poor hygiene or other treatment they had received. Baldovino had also accused the women of conspiring to try and extort money from her.

But both of the victims were not only scarred by the silicone injected into their faces, they also suffered infections, which have not been resolved and may be irreversible, the magistrate noted.

“You need to understand how seriously this court views that conduct,” the magistrate stated, before she recommended that Baldovino be deported by immigration after serving her time.