Woman who claimed to be trainee nurse injected customers with unlicensed treatment

A woman from north Wales, who claimed to be a trainee nurse, injected customers with a substance unlicensed for UK use during cosmetic procedures.

At Caernarfon Crown Court on Wednesday, (11 March), Carol Ann Edwards, 38, of Bethesda, was sentenced to a 12-month Community Order, 15 days rehabilitation, and ordered to pay a £500 fine plus £1,000 in compensation.

Edwards had pleaded guilty to two counts of Fraud by False Representation at a previous hearing on 12 January.

The Court heard how two complainants who, after having seen an advert on social media, booked and paid for Botox treatment with Edwards, trading as ‘5 Star Aesthetics’.

They complained that the treatment wasn’t having the desired effect and, despite eventually being offered additional sessions, struggled to get a response from her.

Botox is a registered Trademark and registered medicine that must be prescribed following suitable consultation.

However, Edwards had not been using Botox as she advertised. Instead, she used an unlicensed, inferior alternative called Fraxin, which may have similar effects to botox but is not authorised for use in the UK.

Anglesey Trading Standards received various complaints from customers in relation to treatments and the business owner’s failure to respond to them between April and October 2023.

Due to the type of treatment and equipment involved, with the provision of non-surgical cosmetic procedures currently unregulated, the complaints fell outside the remit of the local Environmental Health licensing regime.

Instead, Trading Standards officers contacted Edwards regarding the concerning trade practices and poor customer service.

During discussions Edwards informed officers that the substance she had used was not in fact Botox but Fraxin.

Ms Edwards failed to acknowledge any problem with her actions. She also told officers she was a trainee nurse in the final year of her qualification. This claim was later found to be untrue.

Sentencing Judge Timothy Petts summarised that the two customers thought they were getting Botox and wouldn’t have agreed if they had known it was an unlicensed alternative Fraxin with unknown side effects.

Although the amount of monetary harm was relatively low, the potential for physical harm was much higher as things could have gone badly wrong.

Judge Petts added that the pre-sentence report had identified difficulties with mental health resulting in poor judgement as opposed to intention to cause harm; and that the compensation awarded was higher than just the cost of the treatment to reflect the additional strain on victims.

Anglesey’s Public Protection portfolio holder, Councillor Nicola Roberts, welcomed the judgement.

Cllr Roberts said: “This was financial gain and unfair competitive advantage from substituting a premium medicine with a cheaper unlicensed alternative.

“Fortunately, the victims did not suffer adverse side effects. The deliberate misinformation given to customers, who thought they had received Botox, any could have been seriously hampered any emergency medical treatment.

“Thankfully, it was not needed.”

Anglesey Trading Standards Manager, Emma Jones, warned residents to be careful when considering non-surgical cosmetic treatments.

She added, “Although they may initially seem lower risk than surgical alternatives, unregulated cosmetic treatments do not require qualifications, licensing or adherence to any codes of professional conduct.

“In Wales, the mandatory licensing for special procedures, only applies to acupuncture, body piercing, electrolysis and tattooing. As such all other non-surgical cosmetic procedures, including ‘Botox’ and dermal fillers, continue to be unregulated.”

Medicinal products, including ‘Botox’, should only be prescribed following medical consultation with a qualified professional. There is now a strict ban on remote prescribing, which requires all patients to have an in-person consultation before receiving treatment.