Whalesca Castillo, 49, of the Bronx, will spend four to eight years in prison over the illegal administration and deadly injection of silicone into a woman’s buttocks and thighs.
Castillo pleaded guilty to second degree manslaughter in December. On Thurs., February 22, she was sentenced to four to eight years in prison.
The present charges stem from Castillo’s involvement in the 2018 death of 48-year-old Lesbia Ayala. Castillo injected silicone in Ayala’s backside and thighs for cosmetic augmentation purposes.
Ayala died of silicone embolism syndrome shortly thereafter, according to the Bronx District Attorney’s Office.
Castillo was neither a medical professional nor licensed provider when she injected the silicone at a Bronx apartment complex.
Earlier in 2018, Castillo performed the same buttock-enhancing procedure on a 39-year-old woman, leaving her with extensive infections and pain in her buttocks and thighs, authorities said.
Not The First Time
Castillo was a “repeat offender” who had previously performed procedures for $1,500, ABC 7 News reports.
In 2011, Castillo pleaded guilty to federal charges and was sentenced in 2012 to a year in prison, and fined $100,000 for administering silicone injections to women out of her Bronx home.
2012: “Since at least 2009, CASTILLO, who does not hold a medical or nursing license of any kind in New York State, has imported liquid silicone from the Dominican Republic and administered injections to women for buttocks enhancement. She administered these injections in her Bronx home, representing to her clients that they were safe, and charging them hundreds of dollars per injection. One woman, who paid CASTILLO $1,000 for injections, experienced pain and shortness of breath following the procedure, and fainted within hours. When the woman called CASTILLO to report her medical symptoms after being revived by her boyfriend, CASTILLO discouraged her from seeking proper medical attention, saying that a hospital would not help her because the procedure was illegal.”
U.S. Attorney’s Office, Southern District of New York, “Bronx Woman Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to One Year in Prison for Conducting Underground Silicone Injection Business,” June 25, 2012
In 2014, Castillo was again imprisoned for the same offense, serving an additional nine months, according to New York news outlet, ABC 7.
In 2019, Castillo was arrested for her involvement in the present case, the death of Lesbia Ayala.
Bronx DA Hopes Case Serves as Warning, Saves Lives
Defendant Whalesca Castillo “illegally injected the victim with a silicone substance for cosmetic purposes,” Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark said.
“Tragically, the injections killed the victim. The defendant also performed a dangerous cosmetic procedure that left another woman with substantial pain.
The Bronx DA further stated, “These cases hopefully will serve as a warning to the public to not undergo unauthorized procedures that can gravely threaten their health or even cause death.”
Family and Many Others Say Sentence Far Too Short
Family members say the sentencing length isn’t enough. Isn’t justice.
“Four years is not enough,” Ayala’s sister Vanessa told New York’s ABC 7, “This is not the first time she did what she did. This was her third time. The last time resulted in my sister’s death. There’s no way that four years is justice.”
Family members aren’t the only ones displeased with the length of Castillo’s prison sentence.
- “4-8 years for what she did is a derisory [‘ridiculously small or inadequate’] sentence. Add 20 to those numbers,” reads the ‘best’ or most popular comment on the Post’s Castillo coverage, “Black-market NYC plastic surgeon hit with prison time for fatal butt lift.”
- “4-8 years for murder and no deportation? I like to be in America….” says the next.
- “That’s what I thought: 4 to 8 years for murder? How is that even possible?”
- “Yeah, 4 – 8 years……but with DE&I Math she’ll be out in 18 months…..if she doesn’t kill anyone in prison, then she’d have to serve her full sentence.”
FDA Warns Silicone Injections Can Be Deadly
In November 2017, the FDA warned of “serious injuries and disfigurement” resulting from injectable silicone then being falsely marketed as FDA-approved.
“Consumers need to be aware that injectable silicone used for body contouring is not FDA-approved and can cause serious side effects that may be permanent or may even lead to death. Side effects can include ongoing pain and serious injuries, such as scarring, tissue death, and permanent disfigurement; if the silicone migrates beyond the injection site, it could cause an embolism (blockage of a blood vessel), stroke, infections and death. Serious complications may occur right away or could develop weeks, months, or years later.”
U.S. Food & Drug Administration, “FDA warns about illegal use of injectable silicone for body contouring and associated health risks,” November 13, 2017
The agency differentiated between injected free- or liquid-silicone—which can cause serious permanent side effects or “may even lead to death”—versus that allegedly contained by breast implants.
“Injectable silicone is different from the silicone contained within approved breast implants, because the breast implant shell keeps the silicone from migrating within the body,” FDA said.
“Those who have been offered or have received injectable silicone for body contouring from an unlicensed provider are encouraged to use the FDA website to Report Suspected Criminal Activity.”
In November 2021, the US regulatory agency further warned that silicone injectables, which are not FDA-approved, “can be dangerous and can cause serious injury and even death.”
“Injectable silicone is permanent and stays in your body. It can move throughout the body and cause serious health consequences, including death,” FDA said.