Acting Essex County Prosecutor Robert D. Laurino announced today that an Essex County Grand Jury returned a three-count indictment charging Anivia Cruz-Dilworth, 28, of New Brunswick with practicing medicine without a license.
In March, six women showed up in the emergency rooms of Essex County area hospitals complaining of problems after having received buttocks-enhancement injections. An investigation revealed Cruz-Dilworth had injected women with what she described at hydro-gel. Several of the woman sustained serious bacterial infections requiring them to undergo surgeries.
According to Assistant Prosecutor Peter Sepulveda, who is handling the case, women who underwent these procedures were put in touch with Cruz-Dilworth by word-of-mouth at area beauty salons. Cruz-Dilworth would come to the women’s home to perform the procedure. In one case, she did the procedure at her home, a gated community in New Brunswick. She charged the women between $650 and $1,000.
“Her actions caused a lot of harm. Many of these women had to undergo surgery following these illegal procedures,’’ said Sepulveda. “One woman had to undergo five separate hospitalizations and multiple surgeries as a result of the injuries sustained from the unlawfully performed buttocks injections.’’
In her biography, Cruz-Dilworth describes herself as a 5’10’’ full-figure model. She says she has been represented by Wilhelmina and Clicks modeling agencies in New York City and has appeared on “The View’’ and in Essence Magazine and Oprah’s O Magazine.
She is scheduled to appear in court on Dec. 9, before the Honorable Peter J. Vazquez, Judge of the Superior Court.
Acting Prosecutor Laurino commended Howard Lam, a criminal investigator with the Food and Drug Administration, for assisting in the investigation.
These are mere accusations. All defendants are presumed innocent unless and until they are found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
