A BRITISH patient of Dr Alexander Aslani was told she could have a refund after a botched operation – but only if she signed away her right to sue or even criticise him, the Olive Press can reveal.
Jessica (not her real name) claimed that she had come out of butt lift surgery under the world-renowned plastic surgeon with the silicon implant fitted in the ‘wrong place’.
In a letter seen by this newspaper, the slain Marbella surgeon admitted to feeling ‘incredibly frustrated and sad’ about the operation, and offered to reimburse the patient.
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But astonishingly, the tone of the letter goes on to change dramatically, with Aslani waving away her claim that he’d performed the procedure poorly.
Instead, the surgeon branded her account ‘unfounded allegations’ and said his ‘legal team’ insisted she sign a ‘disclaimer’ before he would refund her.
The document he attached went much further. It barred her from posting ‘any type of criticism nor negative comment’ about him or his clinic on social media – even ‘liking’ anyone else’s.
If she did, under the terms of his demand she would have to return the full €9,600 reimbursement plus costs and interest.
Jessica had buttock implant surgery at Cirumed in June 2021, and had to be operated on again three weeks later because of complications. She eventually had the implants removed by a different surgeon in London.
“With Aslani, he always minimised everything, like it wasn’t an issue,” Jessica explained of her experience after the operation.
“So I felt reassured, but I also felt like death – I was pale, I had no color in me. I was no longer eating. I looked like I did before the operation.
“And that’s when my partner looked over and he told me that they had sewn my bum together. He said he could see little blood clots coming out of the stitches.
“I was like, ‘if I die on a plane, it is what it is’. I needed to get home and say bye to my son.
“As soon as I landed back in the UK, I hugged him after not seeing him for nearly two months.
Three weeks later, she discovered that Aslani and his team had known she had a serious infection as a result of the initial operation, but concealed it until she was hospitalised by the early stages of sepsis.
“I literally said my goodbyes because I felt like that was it, like I was going to die. And that’s when I went to A&E, literally an hour after hugging my son.”
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She was told by an NHS specialist that she was lucky to be alive.
Weeks earlier, Aslani had won £40,000 in libel damages from another former patient who criticised him online.
But not satisfied with his High Court victory, the UK-trained medic went on to petition for her bankruptcy and then spent more than three years trying to have her jailed for contempt of court.
“He crushed all of us with aggressive lawyers and his resources,” said a third patient, who abandoned a separate criminal complaint against him. “It was financially impossible to fight him.”
Aslani, 57, was shot dead at the clinic on October 7 by a teenage contract hitman.
The German surgeon had taken issue with Jessica’s statement that an MRI scan had shown an implant in the wrong position.
Nothing in her correspondence or scans showed this, he wrote – and even if it did, he would ‘critically question the experience and qualification’ of whoever had said so.
He called her claims ‘unfounded allegations’, said his legal team feared a refund ‘could be interpreted that we would agree to untrue allegations’, and insisted the removal of her implants ‘was avoidable’.
“My legal team therefore rightfully insists on disclaimer,” he wrote, attaching what he called a draft suggested by his insurer.
“If this is OK for you, please return it to me signed and we are happy to proceed with the reimbursement.”
The letter did not mention that the attached document would also bar her from criticising him online.
The ‘extrajudicial transaction’, dated September 13, 2021 – seven weeks after the London libel ruling – refunded the €9,600 cost of her first operation in exchange for her waiving any claim against the clinic, in or out of court.
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Jessica also had to undertake not to post ‘any type of criticism nor negative comment’ about the clinic or Aslani on social media, ‘directly or indirectly’ – not even by liking others’ negative comments. Breaking that would mean repaying the full sum, plus costs and interest.
The document recorded the clinic’s version of events: that her complications were ‘inherent to the surgery itself’, that she chose ‘of her own free will’ to have the implants removed, and that she exempted the clinic and Aslani ‘of any responsibility’.
It also said the London clinic that treated her had no experience in buttock implant surgery.
Although written as if both parties met in Marbella that day, the entire exchange was handled by email, and she never returned to Spain after flying home unwell.
“I knew it was never just me all alone, but everyone was petrified to speak up,” Jessica said.
A second contract seen by the Olive Press carries a far larger penalty.
It values her ‘services’ at €9,000: half paid on signing, the rest offset against her surgery and aftercare, valued at the same amount.
If she broke its terms, she would have to repay what she received and the value of her treatment, plus €100,000 for any ‘actions, statements, collaborations or publications’ against the company, its employees or its surgeons.
The clinic also reserved the right to bring civil or criminal proceedings.
In a more sinister turn, even disclosing the contract itself would trigger an equal penalty, and disputes would be sent to the Marbella courts, where Aslani had a significant home advantage.
Since the operations, Jessica says she has permanent nerve damage in one of her legs and often endures sleepless nights because of the pain.
She is also on antidepressants, but says: “I’m just taking each day as it comes and doing the best I can.”
Click here to read more Marbella News from The Olive Press.