Salon Owner Offering 'Vampire Facials' Indicted On 24 Charges After Patrons Contracted HIV

A salon owner in New Mexico was indicted on 24 felonies, including racketeering, tax evasion, fraud, and practicing medicine without a license this week after at least two clients who availed her "vampire facial" service contracted HIV.

The indictment of Maria de Lourdes Ramos de Ruiz, 59, Monday came after over a year of investigation. Investigators had launched a probe in 2019 after at least two of her clients at the VIP Beauty Salon and Spa who received "vampire facials" reportedly contracted HIV, according to a statement issued Wednesday by the office of New Mexico Attorney General Hector Balderas.

"Individuals who jeopardize the health and safety of New Mexican families must be held accountable," Balderas said in the statement. "We look forward to presenting this case at trial."

"The New Mexico Department of Health in August 2018 learned a person with no risk factors for HIV had contracted the bloodborne infection after getting a 'vampire facial' at the VIP Beauty Salon and Spa," the statement explained. "The DOH, the New Mexico Regulation and Licensing Department, and deputy director of Boards and Commissions inspected the VIP Spa the following month."

Investigators learned that while Ramos de Ruiz has a cosmetologist license, it expired in 2013. "Ramos de Ruiz told them she does breast and buttocks sculpting, cellulite treatments and 'vampire facials," the statement further said.

Authorities also discovered the business establishment lacking infection control measures. "Inspectors found 'numerous health code violations and unsafe infection control practices,' including unwrapped needles, blood being dumped into the kitchen sink and unlabeled syringes beside food in the refrigerator," according to the statement.

Cops also found "foreign and American prescription and 'dangerous' drugs, and medical products that required an order from a licensed physician" during the investigation, People reported while citing a copy of the indictment.

Ramos de Ruiz allegedly also falsely claimed that she had been professionally trained to perform Botox procedures and "vampire facial" by presenting phony diplomas to his clients, according to the outlet.

A "vampire facial" is a cosmetic procedure during which PRP or platelet-rich plasma is implanted into the skin by the microdermabrasion method. The process involves drawing a patient’s own blood, spinning it in a centrifuge, and injecting it into the skin using several small needles.