The Facial Plastic Surgery Association of Thailand lodged a police complaint Tuesday against a "fake doctor" behind a controversial plastic surgery campaign, who allegedly gave country singer Surachai Sombatchareon a facelift last week.
Association chairman, Cholatis Sinratchatanan, accompanied by lawyer Bancha Boonphayoong, filed the complaint at Somdet Chao Phraya police station against a woman claiming to be a plastic surgeon calling herself Dr Xeping.
The woman allegedly made exaggerated claims as part of facial surgery campaign she initiated, called "Face Off Project by Dr Xeping".
In her campaign, Dr Xeping claims to be able to perform a surgical technique on 10 spots on the face that makes people aged about 60 look younger than 30, according to Dr Cholatis.
Dr Cholatis was speaking to the media at the association's offices in Bangkok's Klong San district Tuesday after filing the complaint.
Dr Thanawat Chotima, chairman of the Thai Association and Academy of Cosmetic Surgery and Medicine, also attended the press conference.
Dr Cholatis said the association was flooded with inquiries about the technique after Surachai spoke to the media about his pending facial surgery last week. Media outlets also visited the hospital where the surgery was performed.
After checking with the Medical Council of Thailand (TMC), the association discovered there was no doctor called Dr Xeping, he said. Dr Cholatis said the TMC was unable to summon Dr Xeping for questioning because she was not a real doctor. As a result, the association decided to take legal action against her.
He said the phrase "face off" is an exaggerated and misleading term about her facial surgery service since Surachai, 60, only underwent a facelift and had a hair transplant.
Dr Cholatis said so far no plastic surgeon has yet come out to debunk the claim which leaves it open for people who are not doctors to exploit the plastic surgery business. "I ask people who are behind this project to stop making exaggerated claims because they can mislead people wanting the surgery," he said.
Mr Bancha said he had come across information suggesting Dr Xeping was a fake doctor, without elaborating.
According to Mr Bancha, Dr Cholatis's name was falsely used in the campaign. Several examples of his work were also shared on social media by the woman to persuade consumers, he said.
A complaint of uploading false information on social media was also filed against her, Mr Bancha said.
Cosmetic surgery can be performed in several ways such as using lasers or injecting Botox but these techniques need to be conducted by a qualified person, which the people behind the face off campaign are not, Dr Thanawat said.
Plastic surgery is a lucrative business so it is no surprise it has attracted a number of people making false claims, he said.
He said he has been conducting plastic surgery for more than 40 years and has never heard of someone called Dr Xeping. Legal action against the woman is necessary to uphold medical profession ethics, Dr Thanawat added.