Bradenton woman accused of injecting fake Botox

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A Bradenton woman has been arrested for allegedly injecting fake Botox into patients, police say.

Bradenton police announced Wednesday the arrest of Diane D'anca. The agency began an undercover operation after the Florida Department of Health received an anonymous tip back in November 2017.

"This is a person who steps around the boundaries to do it for personal gains and financial gain," said Lt.Brian Thiers.

Over seven years, Bradenton Police Lieutenant Brian Thiers said D'anca raked in thousands of dollars from customers coming to her home for facial treatments, in particular, Botox injections.

One customer paid $36,000 over the course of several years, Thiers said.

"She was very confident that she had done nothing wrong. She was very very aware that she was injecting Botox and felt that she knew exactly what she was doing and saw no wrong in what she was doing," said Thiers.

On December 19, 2017, a search warrant was executed, police say, at D'anca's home located at 3206 63rd Avenue West. Inside, investigators say they found a bedroom converted to resemble a medical office.

They said they also found a large amount of medical supplies and medications, specifically a substance used as the fake Botox.

They described it as imported, counterfeit, and not regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.

Bradenton detectives say they found medical records for about 100 patients and injection records dating back to 2011.

"We saw them handcuff her," said neighbor Becky Wittenmyer, who doesn't recall seeing lots of people coming by the home. "For that you would have thought there had been a lot of traffic, people coming and going, but that wasn't the case."

As police continue to reach out to D'anca's clients, now turned victims, neighbors remain in disbelief.

"I think that's pretty crazy. Why somebody would trust someone who didn't have a license is crazy," said Wittenmyer.

D'anca was arrested and charged with practicing medicine without a license, practicing cosmetology without a license, and possession of a controlled substance.

Anyone who has received treatment from D'anca and has concerns is asked to contact the Florida Department of Health at 727-552-1145.

Anyone with information regarding the criminal investigation is asked to call Detective Carl Jones at 941-932-9351 or email crimetips@cityofbradenton.com.