A female Vietnamese overstayer was arrested on Friday for performing illegal plastic surgery at her home, Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Ho Chan Nam said at a press conference yesterday.

The 38-year-old suspect surnamed Nguyen is unemployed. She worked as a domestic helper until March last year, and has been overstaying ever since, according to Ho.

Ho said that a woman reported to the Judiciary Police on August 29 that she saw several video clips on a Douyin (抖音) and a Facebook account that someone in Macau was providing double-eyelid surgery and using syringes to inject medical substances for beauty treatments at a private flat, she suspected that someone was involved in unlicenced plastic surgery and beauty treatment.

According to Ho, the Judiciary Police identified and located the suspect who lived in a flat in the Avenida de Horta e Costa neighbourhood. PJ officers and the Health Bureau (SSM) officials went to the flat where they questioned Nguyen. A large number of aesthetic medicine products and equipment was seized in the flat. The Health Bureau confirmed that no medical licence had been issued for the premises, nor did Nguyen have a local cosmetic surgery qualification, suspecting that she engaged in illegal aesthetic medicine.

Under questioning, Nguyen told the police that she had worked as a domestic helper until March last year. She worried about being repatriated to her country so she decided to provide plastic surgery in a flat that she rented for 7,500 patacas a month. She also told the police that she had studied plastic surgery in South Korea and that she started her business in March 2020, Ho said.

She also said, according to Ho, that she had brought the aesthetic medicine products and equipment to Macau from her hometown, and the video clips aimed to attract clients. She told the police that she charged her customers between “tens and hundreds” of patacas per treatment, and that she spent the earnings on her living expenses.

According to preliminary investigations, the police suspect that Nguyen illegally performed plastic surgery on about 50 non-local customers, Ho said.

The suspect was transferred to the Public Prosecutions Office (MP) on Saturday, facing a charge of the unauthorised practice of a profession (Article 322 of the Macau Penal Code), according to Ho. 

Judiciary Police (PJ) spokesman Ho Chan Nam looks on during yesterday’s press conference at the Public Security Police (PSP) pressroom. Photo: Camy Tam