Hong Kong beautician jailed for 7 weeks for helping boss provide unlicensed botulinum toxin jab
Lau Lo, 38, helped her unlicensed manager administer botulinum toxin shot to victim, who later suffered blurred vision and increased heartrate
A beautician has been sentenced to seven weeks in prison for helping her unlicensed manager to provide a botched botulinum toxin injection two years ago at a now-closed Hong Kong aesthetic treatment centre.
Lau Lo was escorted to Kowloon City Court in a prison van on Thursday and jailed on a charge of performing medical treatments without registration causing injuries at CC Beauty in Jordan on November 7, 2022.
The 38-year-old was found guilty of having referred her friend, Qian Qingqing, to take the botulinum toxin shot administered by manager Zhang Min, who was not qualified to practice medicine in the city.
The trial heard Qian suffered from side effects such as blurred vision, problems with chewing and an increased heartrate soon after the injection. Lau had received a HK$200 (US$26) commission for referring the victim.
Magistrate Kestrel Lam Tsz-hong said in sentencing that an immediate term of imprisonment was inevitable, given the “very serious” nature of the offence and the public safety risk it posed.
He agreed Lau’s involvement was significantly lower than that of Zhang, whose treatments left two other customers with symptoms such as dizziness, hoarse voice, limb weakness, breathing difficulty, facial swelling and urinary incontinence.
Lam said the offence “could hardly be described as premeditated”, as the evidence showed Lau did not intend to deceive her friend or take part in a conspiracy for a monetary reward.
