An Orange County man performed cosmetic procedures on clients and possibly used counterfeit products, prosecutors allege.
Elias Renteria Segoviano, 61, of Brea, rented a space inside a salon suite for his business called Botox in Anaheim. His car's personalized license plate even said Elias M.D., prosecutors said. He is now facing charges of perjury, unauthorized practice of medicine and falsely indicating he had a medical license, officials said.
He has pleaded not guilty.
Prosecutors point to a prolific social media presence where Segoviano showed what he could do and what it would cost. He speaks to his audience entirely in Spanish.
Get top local stories in Southern California delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC LA's News Headlines newsletter.
One woman told NBCLA sister station Telemundo she saw Segoviano's certificates and assumed he was a legitimate doctor.
His videos appear on instagram, TikToc and Facebook showing various procedures using fillers for lips, threading for facelifts and botox.
In one post he also shows a phone number for an office in Mexico.
Local
Get Los Angeles's latest local news on crime, entertainment, weather, schools, COVID, cost of living and more. Here's your go-to source for today's LA news.
According to his website, he has 20-years experience and promises excellent customer service.
But prosecutors say he never had a license to practice in the United States. They believe he'd been seeing clients here since 2019.
People may be suffering from side effects and are too ashamed or embarrassed, but if you know this person do come forward," said Jose Flores, an Orange County District Attorney investigator.
