Arizona Doctor Accused of Performing Botched Plastic Surgery While Drunk: ‘Feel Like Frankenstein’

Two Arizona women have filed lawsuits against a plastic surgeon after they say the surgeries left them disfigured and feeling “like Frankenstein,” reports said. 

The lawsuits, filed by Wendy Ellsworth and Alicia Armijo, accuse Dr. Bradley Becker of performing surgeries while impaired, leaving the women botched, Phoenix New Times reported. Ellsworth’s suit accuses Becker of medical negligence, battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress.

Ellsworth told the newspaper when she met with Becker in the Banner Estrella Medical Center preoperative room, he reeked of alcohol and was visibly annoyed when she asked if he was going to mark the surgical site on her body. The markup for her surgery took about 30 seconds, she said. 

“I had put my money down. The way he was acting, there was no way he was gonna give me my money back,” she told Phoenix New Times. “And so, I just kept going, ‘Wait a minute. This is Banner. There’s no way Banner would let an inebriated doctor operate on people.’”

The surgery, performed in October 2021, left Ellsworth “horrified to find that her body was substantially disfigured from the cosmetic surgery,” the newspaper reported. She had to undergo corrective surgery with a different surgeon, who took 45 minutes to markup her body prior to surgery. 

Ellsworth told Phoenix New Times she was alarmed to discover extra skin that was supposed to be removed during the tummy tuck was sagging off her body and her breasts were disfigured and not the same size. 

“It’s hard to feel like you can go out when you feel like Frankenstein,” Ellsworth told the newspaper. 

Becker’s website says he has been licensed in Arizona since 2002 and that he specializes in tummy tuck and breast surgeries. 

Ellsworth wasn’t alone in the alleged mangled procedure. Armijo also told the newspaper she had a horrible experience going under Becker’s knife and allegedly noticed a strong odor of alcohol on the surgeon. 

Armijo had a tummy tuck surgery in March that left ugly scars below her stomach. She also complained to the newspaper about the markup experience, which she said didn’t look like what she saw in online videos. She said she knew she’d need a corrective operation just three months after the surgery. 

Another surgeon told Armijo she would need 3 to 4 inches of skin removed, Phoenix New Times reported. She eventually began counseling to cope. 

The lawsuits also name Ioana Baragau as a defendant, who the women thought was a nurse in Becker’s practice before later learning she was his romantic partner, Phoenix New Times reported. Baragau allegedly gave the women medical advice on recovering from their surgeries. 

Armijo told the outlet she cannot afford another $12,000 for corrective surgery, which is about what she paid for the initial one. Ellsworth’s corrective surgery cost $25,000, on top of the $16,000 she paid Becker. 

“The body dysmorphia that set in after surgery, which I never had before, is depressing,” Armijo told the outlet.