+

Cookies on the Business Insider India website

Business Insider India has updated its Privacy and Cookie policy. We use cookies to ensure that we give you the better experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we\'ll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the Business Insider India website. However, you can change your cookie setting at any time by clicking on our Cookie Policy at any time. You can also see our Privacy Policy.

Close
HomeQuizzoneWhatsappShare Flash Reads
 

A Colorado plastic surgeon was charged with negligent homicide after a teen patient went into a coma then died from a breast augmentation surgery

Feb 20, 2022, 01:30 IST
Insider
Lights on a police car.Oliver Helbig/Getty Images
  • A Colorado plastic surgeon was charged following the death of a teen patient
  • Dr. Geoffrey Kim, 52, was charged with aggravated assault and criminally negligent homicide.
Advertisement

A Colorado plastic surgeon is facing charges stemming from the death of an 18-year-old patient following a breast augmentation procedure in 2019.

According to Arapahoe County Sherriff's Office, 52-year-old Dr. Geoffrey Kim turned himself in on Wednesday and was charged with criminally negligent homicide and first-degree aggravated assault. The surgeon was booked and bonded out the same day.

In addition, nurse anesthetist, Rex Meeker, was charged with manslaughter. The criminal charges come after authorities conducted an investigation for more than two years, officials said.

"Our hope is that this will be the beginning of bringing justice and a sense of closure to Emmalyn's family," Arapahoe County Sherriff's Office Captain of Investigations, Travis Stewart said in a statement.

In August 2019 the teen, identified as Emmalyn Nguyen, went to Colorado Aesthetic and Plastic Surgery for the procedure, according to officials, and "went into cardiac arrest after being administered anesthesia." Nguyen was in a coma and suffered brain damage before she died 14 months later, according to KCNC-TV.

Advertisement

As NBC News reported Nguyen's family filed a lawsuit in 2019 claiming that she was "unobserved" by Kim and Meeker for 15 minutes after being placed under anesthesia. Per the outlet citing the lawsuit, her skin turned blue and Nguyen went into cardiac arrest.

The lawsuit said that first responders were not called to take Nguyen to the hospital until five hours later, according to the report.

Nguyen's family released a statement through their lawyer, saying that they're " glad we are finally getting justice for Emmalyn," KCNC-TV reported.

The statement continued: "Even though it will never bring our daughter back, at least this will help others from getting hurt and prevent ruining other families' lives. We still haven't been able to get closure from Emmalyn's death. Hopefully bringing criminal charges will bring out the truth about what happened and will bring justice for Emmalyn," according to the news station.

Next Article