Coroner to write to Turkish surgeon after man takes own life following daughter’s ‘Brazilian butt lift’ death

A coroner will write to the surgeon who performed a botched ‘Brazilian butt lift’ on a young woman to make him aware of the ‘tentacles’ of grief after her dad took his own life three years after her death.

Craig Cambridge, 51, was found dead at his home in Leeds last April three years after his daughter Leah, 29, died when the operation went wrong in Turkey.

An inquest into his death heard he was never able to get past the loss of his daughter.

It was heard that his life “spiralled downwards” and he suffered from depression and alcohol dependency in the years after her death.

Wakefield Coroners Court heard on Wednesday how the partner of his daughter Chelsea Cambridge found his lifeless body.

His tragic death came three years after his daughter died of a pulmonary embolism after Dr Ali Uckan at Can Hastanesi Hospital accidentally injected fat into her veins in Izmir in August 2018.

She had three heart attacks on the operating table at the clinic, made famous by reality TV star Kim Kardashian.

Senior coroner Kevin McLoughlin, who conducted inquests into both Craig and Leah’s deaths, said he was incensed the surgeon had “stood well clear” of the incident.

And he intends to write to Dr Ali Uckan and the medical authorities in Turkey to make them aware of the “tentacles” of grief the botched surgery has had.

‘I was incensed’

Addressing Craig’s heartbroken daughters Chelsea and Hayley and his ex-partner Theresa Hall today (Wed), Mr McLoughlin said: “Normally I am quite detached and hard-hearted about inquests, but when I saw another tragedy had befallen your family, I felt quite grievous.

“Having conducted the inquest into Leah all those years ago, I was incensed that the surgeon in Turkey stood well clear.

“I am proposing to send the report to the surgeon to make him aware of the tentacles of this.

“I am intending to send it to the medical authorities in Turkey to make them aware of how a tragedy manifests itself years later.

“I feel dreadfully sorry for you as a family.”

The court was told Craig, a former personal trainer, was found by his daughter Chelsea and her partner.

They had gone to see him at his house on Monday, 5 April, but the door was locked so her partner climbed through a window only to make the tragic discovery of Craig’s body.

Paramedics were called, but he was pronounced dead at 7.50pm by the ambulance crew.

The court heard he left notes for both his daughters indicating that he had intended to take his own life.

The inquest heard he had been under the care of a community mental health care team and was given anti-depressants.

Tragically, police found that he had tried to call the doctors three times on the morning of his death but they were not open because it was a Bank Holiday.

Craig had a history of anxiety and depression, which was made worse after Leah’s death and after turning to drink he became dependent on alcohol, it was heard.

Leah flew to the clinic - which also claimed to have worked with UK TV personalities such as Lauren Goodger, Amber Dowding and Chloe Ferry - in August 2018.

Risks of surgical procedure

The controversial procedure involves extracting fat from areas of the body and re-injecting it into the buttocks to enhance its shape.

Leah’s inquest heard Dr Uckan had admitted the operation “is a guessing game” to her widower Scott, who travelled to Turkey after hearing of her death.

At an inquest into Leah’s death in 2019, Mr McLoughlin branded the surgeon who carried out the fatal operation a “coward” for not answering her family's questions.

Mr McLoughlin said he wrote to Dr Ali Uckan eight times to ask him to give evidence at the inquest, but he did not respond.

Returning a verdict of suicide, Mr McLoughlin said: “I am reliant upon the pathologist for the cause of death, which in this case is hanging.

“This was a suicide attributed in part to the death of his daughter who died in surgery in Turkey."

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