Inset: Felipe Hoyos-Foronda (NYPD). Background: The apartment building where Hoyos-Foronda allegedly performed illegal plastic surgery that left a woman brain-dead (WCBS).

A 38-year-old man in New York City has been detained after allegedly conducting an illegal plastic surgery procedure in his apartment, resulting in a 31-year-old woman becoming brain-dead. Felipe Hoyos-Foronda was apprehended at John F. Kennedy International Airport on Friday and faces charges of second-degree assault along with unauthorized practice of a professional occupation.

As detailed in a criminal complaint accessed by The Independent, the victim visited Hoyos-Foronda’s Queens apartment on the evening of March 28, 2025, seeking the removal of her butt implants. Upon her arrival at the location, which reportedly served as an unlicensed medical facility, authorities state that Hoyos-Foronda administered several injections of lidocaine.

Unfortunately, the injections soon caused the victim to go into cardiac arrest, police said. Hoyos-Foronda reportedly called Emergency Medical Services to his home before fleeing the scene in his car.

Upon arriving at the scene, first responders entered the home where they found the victim unresponsive. She was transported to Astoria General Hospital for treatment, where doctors believed she suffered lidocaine toxicity due to excessive amounts of the drug being in her system, The New York Daily News reported. The condition typically causes seizures and an irregular heartbeat, but in extreme cases leads to cardiac arrest.

The building’s landlord reportedly provided authorities with information on Hoyos-Foronda and his photograph.