Horrific images of an exploded butt-lift operation gone wrong were shown to a Los Angeles court on Tuesday as a mother and daughter’s murder trial got underway.
Libby Adame, 53, and her daughter Alicia Galaz are facing murder charges for allegedly causing the death of their client, Karissa Rajpaul, 26, in October 2019.
Prosecutors argued in opening statements on Tuesday that the mother and daughter knowingly injected ‘toxic’ chemicals into clients during amateurish operations in the Lynwood, California area.
They claimed this ultimately led aspiring porn star Rajpaul to suffer a heart attack during her third surgery with the duo in a hotel room.
The illegal surgery ring allegedly lured in a number of women into painful procedures, as prosecutors also cited a woman who allegedly died following another of their butt lift operations in 2018, which they were not charged over.
Grim images exclusively obtained by DailyMail.com show the autopsy photos of two women who died after having the procedure – including Rajpaul. A woman who died earlier was shown with a huge angry rupture on one of her buttocks.
Libby Adame, 53, (pictured) is facing murder charges alongside her daughter after allegedly running an illegal plastic surgery ring that led to the death of a client in October 2019
Alicia Galaz (pictured) seen Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court, where prosecutors said in opening statements that she and her mom gave numerous surgeries despite having no medical training
The two are charged with the murder of aspiring porn star Karissa Rajpaul, 26, (pictured), who underwent three butt augmentation procedures and died immediately after the third in October of 2019
A grim photo displayed in court Tuesday showed a butt that had burst open after an unsuccessful lifting procedure involving silicone
Horrific images of Rajpaul’s surgery (center) were shown to the court as the trial began Tuesday. The court was also shown images of a previous client who died in 2018 (left), which they were not charged over, and allegedly ‘toxic’ material (right) that was used in injections
Another exhibit shared in court Tuesday shows what prosecutors say is a butt lift procedure gone wrong
The mother and daughter allegedly offered makeshift surgeries alongside two other women, who have not been charged, as they would provide a cut-price option to expensive operations.
It was claimed that they would offer in-house buttocks augmentation procedures in hotel suites and in their homes, while recklessly ignoring safety procedures.
Images of brown bottles were shown to the court, which Adame and Galaz injected into their clients despite allegedly knowing of the material’s toxicity.
Both women were also allegedly operating without any proper medical training, and did not hold appropriate certification allowing them to practice plastic surgery.
However, their defense attorney J. Michael Flanagan claimed in his opening statement that Adame trained in Mexico and was licensed there, and said the supposedly ‘toxic’ materials were typical in Mexico.
At earlier hearings, Flanagan argued that their murder charges were inappropriate as the count required an ‘intent to kill’, claiming there was ‘certainly no intent to kill.’
While a separate procedure was raised on Tuesday, the operation that led to their arrest came on October 15, 2019 – when they gave surgery to Rajpaul for the third time.
Rajpaul shared images from one of her earlier surgeries (pictured), where four women, allegedly including Adame and Galaz, and a man stood around her – none of whom were wearing surgical clothing
A number of grisly images of Brazilian butt lifts gone-wrong were shown as the trial got underway on Tuesday
Prosecutors alleged that the mother and daughter knowingly injected ‘toxic’ materials (pictured) into their clients when giving them silicone implants
Their illegal surgery ring was said to have been carried out in the Lynwood, California area
The mother and daughter (pictured together at an earlier hearing in September 2022) are facing felony counts of practicing medicine without certification, alongside their murder charges
An aspiring porn star, Rajpaul had moved from South Africa to California for her work, and had previously shared a clip of herself during one of the operations.
An image of the earlier procedure was produced in court Tuesday, showing a smiling Rajpaul laying on an operating table while four women, allegedly including Adame and Galaz, and a man stood around her, none of whom were wearing surgical clothing.
She suffered from acute cardiopulmonary dysfunction while on the operating table for the third time, and the mother and daughter then allegedly fled the scene while Rajpaul was rushed to hospital, where she was later pronounced dead.
When the two were ordered to stand trial in March 2023, Deputy District Attorney Lee Cernok said: ‘This is something that’s being done by two people without a medical license… To say this is clandestine is an understatement.’
Grisly images of another fatal procedure allegedly carried out by the pair was also shown to the court – although they were not charged in that case, it was likely raised as investigators feared there were other victims of the lawless procedures.
At the time of their arrest, Detective Bob Dinlocker said chemicals found in the illegal materials they were injecting aren’t even intended to be used in humans and can attack your heart, brain or kidneys.
‘As we looked into this investigation, we did find that it is occurring a lot,’ he said.
‘The internet is filled with these horror stories where they’re cutting the medical grade silicone with the stuff that you would caulk your windows with.
He claimed Adame and Galaz would take supplies to private houses with no regard to typical standards and practices.
If anything went wrong, Dinlocker alleged that the suspects would disappear, leaving paramedics to arrive to an unknown medical emergency – in the same manner that prosecutors said they left Rajpaul.
Defense Attorney J. Michael Flanagan (pictured) claimed in his opening statement that the materials used by the mother and daughter were typically used in Mexico, where he alleged that Adame had been medically trained
Rajpaul shared a video of herself to social media during one of her the operations, which was meant to help her with her work in the adult film industry after moving to California from South Africa
Her treatment was performed by Adame and Galaz without any prior medical training or licensing
It was claimed that they would lure clients by slashing their prices compared to their competitors.
Adame and Galaz charged Rajpaul $3,500 to $4,000 for her operation, whereas a board-certified butt lift would run her anywhere from $10,000 to $15,000, according to NBC4.
Brazilian butt lifts are among the most dangerous plastic surgery procedures around and have the highest mortality rates, but continue to grow in popularity.
The operations increased in America around 77 percent between 2015 to 2019, according to a survey from the International Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery.
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