A BBC investigation has uncovered alarming revelations about a self – proclaimed “beauty consultant” named Ricky Sawyer, whose clientele includes celebrities like Katie Price. Sawyer is offering perilous cosmetic procedures and illegally distributing medication.
Sawyer specializes in liquid Brazilian butt – lifts (BBLs). This procedure involves injecting dermal filler into the buttocks to lift and enlarge them. However, BBC News has spoken to five of his clients who required emergency hospital treatment after their procedures. Testimonies from over 30 women reveal serious complications such as sepsis and necrosis (tissue death). One woman even said she would rather have died than endure the post – treatment pain.
Several local authorities have prohibited Sawyer from practicing in their regions. Undercover filming caught Sawyer handing out antibiotics without a valid prescription, which is a criminal offense. He isn’t qualified to prescribe, and the pills were unlabeled for a specific patient. He also offered to inject increasing doses of local anaesthetic without a prescriber present, another illegal act, and didn’t ask for the reporter’s weight, putting her at risk of an overdose.
Posing as potential clients, a reporter and her friend booked a 45 – minute appointment with Sawyer through his Instagram page, expressing their desire for a 200ml (7fl oz) liquid BBL injection costing £1,200 and paying a £200 deposit. Despite advertising that all liquid BBLs would be done under the guidance of an “ultrasound specialist doctor”, no such doctor was present at his pop – up clinic. He operated from a small room in an east London office block, a non – clinical setting that heightens the risk of infection.
Within five minutes in his office, Sawyer began pressuring the reporter to increase the filler amount, suggesting she could have more and still look natural. By the end of the appointment, he offered to inject a litre of filler, 500ml per buttock, for £2,000. The reporter declined. When confronted later, Sawyer refused to answer questions and slammed the door.
Plastic surgeon Dalvi Humzah, on the Joint Council of Cosmetic Practitioners, reviewed the footage and called Sawyer’s actions “shocking”, “very dangerous”, and a huge risk for patients, putting them at risk of infection and potentially fatal complications. He warned that injecting such a large volume in one session is extremely dangerous, as an infected buttock area could lead to sepsis or even death.
Sawyer boasted of doing up to seven procedures a day, six days a week, charging thousands per appointment.
Joanne, a mother of two from south Wales, is one of the women who suffered severe complications. Persuaded by Sawyer’s ads and celebrity endorsements, she traveled seven hours to Essex for a liquid BBL. But upon arrival, she had doubts. She was only given a postcode and ended up in an industrial estate, waiting in a “dingy little hallway” for half an hour. Despite misgivings, she proceeded as she had paid a £600 deposit. In a small room with just a bed, a stool, and a worktop, Sawyer injected her with a litre of filler. The pain was immediate and unbearable. She felt dizzy, sick, and shaky, and saw Sawyer’s blood – filled gloves. By the end, her bottom was disfigured, and she could barely sit or walk. Sepsis set in, and she had to call 999.
After messaging Sawyer about her hospital admission, he blocked her on Instagram.
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