Felipe Hoyos Foronda, 37, reportedly told authorities he “panicked” after a woman died during a botched plastic surgery procedure he was unlicensed to perform in the United States.
“I panicked, I went straight to the airport. I booked the flight while I was driving,” he allegedly told detectives as he was arrested moments away from boarding a flight at JFK airport to Florida en route to Colombia.
Queens Assistant District Attorney Gregory Lasak Jr. told the courts on Monday that Foronda attempted to flee the country “so he could evade arrest and prosecution, because he claimed he was scared.”
“Firefighters and EMTs responded to the location and worked on the victim on scene for approximately 30 minutes, attempting to revive her,” Lasak said. “But when they arrived, she was pulseless and she wasn’t breathing. Eventually, the victim was moved to Mount Sinai in Astoria, where staff in the emergency room continued to administer lifesaving measures to attempt to save her life."
She was taken to Mount Sinai Queens, where she showed no sign of brain activity. She was removed from life support on April 11.
Maria Penaloza, a mother of two, was only 31 when she died while undergoing a butt implant removal from Foronda in his Queens apartment. She had reportedly paid Forona $1900 for the treatment.
“She began to slur her speech,” Lasak said in court. “Her body began to tense up, and she eventually went into cardiac arrest.
Foronda is alleged to have given the victim lidocaine, a local anesthetic, and saline through a syringe.
“After I injected her, she started to speak funny, then she stopped speaking, and then she tensed up,” Foronda told officers, according to prosecutors.
“Slurred speech is normal during this type of anesthesia,” he allegedly insisted, while noting, “even though, after she tightened up, she didn’t respond.”
“I’ve been practicing in that apartment for a few months,” he admitted, while acknowledging, “I’m not a licensed doctor here. I understand that I’m not allowed to practice medicine.”
Despite not being allowed to practice medicine, Foronda reportedly confessed to performing the procedure carried out on Penaloza “hundreds of times” - gaining clients through word of mouth.
The family of Maria Penaloza speaks out
"As alleged, Felipe Hoyos Foronda provided an unlicensed medical treatment at a make-shift home clinic in Astoria that led to a 31-year-old woman's death," said Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz. "On March 28, the victim went into cardiac arrest after having been injected with lidocaine as part of a botched surgical procedure. Unfortunately, Maria Penaloza, a mother of two, passed away two weeks later. My thoughts are with the victim's family as we seek justice on her behalf."
Outside the courtroom, Penaloza’s mother, Gladys Cabrera, described Foronda as an “assassin,” according to the New York Post.
“He’s a danger to society. This was premeditated,” she reportedly said through tears.
“The family is paying the consequences and we’re waiting for him to suffer the full weight of the law,” Lucy Penaloza, the victim’s sister, said. “How many women have been affected by him?”
Foronda now faces charges of second-degree manslaughter, second-degree assault, and unauthorized practice of a profession.