Ex-patient accused of harassing ‘Boob god’
A plAstic surgeon dubbed the ‘Boob god’ is accusing a patient of libel and harassment.
One of Britain’s top practitioners, Riccardo Frati has operated on a host of celebrities including Big Brother star Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace.
He claims that Karen Bowencarter has spread lies online, accusing him of giving celebrities cut- price treatments in return for positive reviews.
last year she agreed not to contact him, his staff or patients but Dr Frati is now suing the 54year- old for libel, malicious falsehood and harassment at the High court. He wants her sent to prison for allegedly continuing to contact his patients in breach of her promise.
Dr Frati is being represented by David sherborne, who has acted for Johnny Depp and coleen Rooney.
in a pre-trial hearing at the High court, Mr sherborne told Mrs Justice collins Rice that Dr Frati vehemently denied giving cheap surgery for good reviews.
He said that before posting the allegedly defamatory Google review Mrs Bowen- carter had demanded a refund and compensation for her surgery. she said if she did not receive the payments she would be contacting daytime TV shows to ‘expose’ him, the barrister claimed. soon afterward, she wrote comments online which the doctor claims would be read as an allegation that he had ‘fraudulently provided half-price surgery to celebrities in exchange for false social media reviews’. ‘it is false that he has offered any such cutprice services for celebrities for some kind of review,’ Mr sherborne said.
‘the defendant knew full well that was untrue.’
Her aim in posting on Google was to ‘cause as much damage as possible’ to his business and ‘effectively to blackmail him into paying substantial sums of money’, he added.
As part of his case the surgeon applied last year for an injunction against Mrs Bowen-carter, which she settled by agreeing legal ‘undertakings’ not to contact him, his staff or patients.
However over the subsequent year, the modern art dealer had ‘repeatedly contacted and harassed patients of the claimant’, said Mr sherborne. ‘it was hoped this would stop but this hasn’t happened and that has led to the application,’ he added.
William McBarnet, Mrs Bowencarter’s barrister, said she disputed the idea that she had breached the undertakings.
And he said there was a question over whether they were legally binding in the first place, because there is evidence that at the time she agreed to them she was suffering from anxiety and other mental health issues.
the judge gave brief directions for the contempt case to proceed in the new year. A hearing in Dr Frati’s libel claim is due in court later this month.
if found in contempt, Mrs Bowen-carter, of West Malling, Kent, could face a prison sentence of up to two years.
in 2019, Miss Horgan-Wallace claimed that Dr Frati had given her the biggest implants allowed in the UK. He is also thought to have operated on love island’s Hayley Hughes. He featured on Gemma collins’s itV show Diva Forever and Ever discussing plans for her cleavage reduction.
‘Biggest implants in the UK’