María Paz Peñaloza, who died after a botched cosmetic procedure performed by an unlicensed practitioner in Astoria
April 18, 2025 By Bill Parry
A 31-year-old Whitestone mother of two has died weeks after undergoing a cosmetic procedure at an illegal medical practice in Astoria, authorities said.
María Paz Peñaloza visited the unlicensed clinic inside a house at 20-59 35th St. around 1 p.m. on Friday, March 28, to have a buttock implant removed, according to authorities.
The procedure was performed by Felipe Hoyos-Foronda, 38, who officials say is not a licensed medical professional. During the operation, Hoyos-Foronda injected Peñaloza with lidocaine, which caused her to go into cardiac arrest.
EMS arrived at the scene and transported Peñaloza to Mount Sinai Queens Hospital, where she was placed on life support. Doctors determined she had suffered lidocaine toxicity—an overdose of the powerful anesthetic that entered her bloodstream. She never regained consciousness and died two weeks later.
As paramedics responded, officers from the 114th Precinct were called to the scene. While police were being briefed on the situation, Hoyos-Foronda fled in a vehicle.
Investigators tracked the license plate of the car as it traveled southbound on the Van Wyck Expressway toward JFK Airport.
Felipe Hoyos-Foronda, pictured, alongside the Astoria residence where he practiced medicine without a license (NYPD and GMaps)
Members of the Port Authority Police Department detained Hoyos-Foronda after he passed through security and before he could board a departing flight to Colombia. Detectives from the 114th Precinct placed him under arrest.
Hoyos-Foronda was arraigned in Queens Criminal Court on Sunday, March 30, on a complaint charging him with assault in the second degree, an armed felony offense, and unauthorized practice of a profession. Queens Criminal Court Judge Michael Gaffey remanded Hoyos-Foronda into custody without bail.
Peñaloza never regained consciousness and died when she was removed from life support. The charges against Hoyos-Foronda have yet to be upgraded.
“Whenever circumstances change in a case we re-examine the charges,” a Queens District Attorney spokesperson said Thursday. “This remains an active and ongoing investigation, and we cannot provide further comment.”
The NYPD is asking any other victims or individuals with information about Felipe Hoyos-Foronda to come forward by calling the NYPD’s Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782). The public can also submit their tips by logging onto the Crime Stoppers website at crimestoppers.nypdonline.org or on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) @NYPDTips. All calls and messages are confidential.
Peñaloza’s sister launched a GoFundMe account to help pay for the medical and funeral costs.
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