Basement lipo proves fatal, police say

Luiz Carlos Ribeiro and his wife, Ana Maria Miranda Ribeiro, pleaded not guilty at an arraignment on Monday.


A couple who authorities say performed liposuction in the basement of a home has been charged with practicing medicine without a license after the female patient died.

Luiz Carlos Ribeiro, 49, a native of Brazil, and his wife, Ana Maria Miranda Ribeiro, also 49, were arraigned in district court on Monday following the death of a 24-year-old woman Sunday.

The Ribeiros pleaded not guilty. Ribeiro was ordered held on $250,000 cash bail. His wife was held on $50,000 cash bail. Both were ordered to surrender their passports.

The Middlesex District Attorney's Office, which is investigating the case, would not release the identity of the patient. An autopsy was to be performed Monday.

Authorities said the woman was unconscious when she was brought to the hospital Sunday. She was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at the hospital.

The district attorney's office said authorities believe that Ribeiro and his wife administered illegally obtained drugs and performed the surgical procedure on the woman. Neither Ribeiro nor his wife are licensed to practice medicine in Massachusetts.

Police charged Ribeiro with unauthorized practice of medicine, drug possession and distribution, and illegal possession of a hypodermic needle. His wife was charged with unauthorized practice of medicine and drug distribution.

A spokeswoman for the district attorney's office said she did not know what type of drugs.

Framingham, a town of about 67,000 about 20 miles west of Boston, is home to an estimated 14,000 Brazilian immigrants.

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