The Xiluet Plastic Surgery lawsuit landscape in Miami includes a patient death during a Brazilian butt lift, a malpractice suit filed by a severely injured Orlando mother, multiple Florida Department of Health administrative complaints against the clinic and its physicians, a 30-day suspension of its second location, and the voluntary dissolution of the corporation on July 3, 2025.
The 2020 Death of Gia Romualdo-Rodriguez
On September 15, 2020, 46-year-old Gia Romualdo-Rodriguez was undergoing a Brazilian butt lift and breast enhancement at Xiluet when her heart rate and oxygen levels dropped. Dr. Stephanie Stover called 911, and Romualdo-Rodriguez was taken to Kendall Regional Hospital, where she died. The Miami-Dade Medical Examiner’s Office ruled the death accidental, caused by a fat embolism when injected fat lodged in a blood vessel and blocked blood flow.1The Independent. Brazilian Butt Lift Surgery Death in Miami
The Florida Department of Health issued an emergency order on October 23, 2020, restricting Dr. Stover from performing any procedure involving fat transfer or fat grafting, and followed with an administrative complaint on November 6, 2020, that sought penalties up to permanent license revocation.2FindLaw. Stover v. Department of Health In February 2021, Florida’s Third District Court of Appeal quashed the emergency order, finding the department had not provided a sufficient factual basis for the breadth of the restrictions.3Florida Third District Court of Appeal. Stover v. Department of Health Opinion The available record does not show whether any final disciplinary penalty was later imposed on Dr. Stover.
Loyda Hernandez’s Malpractice Lawsuit
In June 2022, Loyda Hernandez, a 39-year-old diabetic mother of four from Orlando, underwent a Brazilian butt lift at Xiluet. According to her lawsuit, she disclosed her diabetes multiple times through the clinic’s electronic intake and was told she was a “good candidate.” She did not meet her surgeon, Dr. Tomasz Kosowski, until the day of the procedure.4NBC Miami. Florida Mom Ends Up Hospitalized Following Plastic Surgery Procedure
The day after surgery, a physician assistant allegedly described a large laceration on her stomach and bruising on her back as “normal.” Weeks later, with worsening pain and leaking fluid, Hernandez returned to the clinic. Dr. Kosowski reportedly drained the wounds and told her husband to handle any further drainage at home using supplies ordered from Amazon. She was eventually hospitalized in an Orlando emergency room with necrosis and ten types of bacteria in her wounds, two of them described as potentially fatal.4NBC Miami. Florida Mom Ends Up Hospitalized Following Plastic Surgery Procedure
Hernandez sued Xiluet and Dr. Kosowski for medical negligence, reporting roughly $500,000 in medical debt, the loss of her job and vehicle, and ongoing treatment for depression, anxiety, and panic attacks. Xiluet denied wrongdoing and argued that Dr. Kosowski was an independent contractor rather than a staff employee.4NBC Miami. Florida Mom Ends Up Hospitalized Following Plastic Surgery Procedure Her attorney said the clinic claimed to carry no insurance, complicating any recovery of damages.5Telemundo 51. Madre Hospitalizada Tras Someterse a Cirugia Plastica en Miami A related case, Hernandez v. Xiluet Plastic Surgery, Inc., No. 2023-023905-CA-01, was filed in Miami-Dade County Circuit Court in September 2023 and is listed as closed.6Trellis Law. Hernandez v. Xiluet Plastic Surgery Inc.
State Complaints, Fines, and a Suspended Second Location
During a September 24, 2020 inspection of Xiluet, state officials documented unlicensed physicians performing surgery, no pre-surgical anesthesia and risk examinations, incomplete surgical logs missing patient identifiers and surgeon names, no quarterly risk management reviews, no updated policy and procedure manual, no transfer agreements or hospital staff privileges for surgeons, and no actively licensed anesthesia provider on-site. On July 27, 2021, facility staff physically refused entry to Department of Health inspectors. The department filed two formal administrative complaints on December 10, 2021.7Miami Herald. Florida Files Complaints Against Xiluet Plastic Surgery
Dr. Gamaliel Mattos was the designated physician for both Xiluet locations, which made him legally responsible for the facility’s compliance.8Miami Herald. Miami Plastic Surgery Clinics Face State Complaints The complaints against him alleged he hid or withheld patient records from inspectors, failed to maintain a risk management program, had “no compliance” with required anesthesia and emergency training, and lacked documentation of transfer agreements or hospital staff privileges.9Yahoo News. No Required Emergency Anesthesia Training The state fined Mattos $10,000 plus $2,096 in case costs and required continuing medical education in risk management and in laws, rules, and ethics.10Miami Herald. Florida Fines Plastic Surgery Clinic Doctors
A separate complaint alleged that on April 21, 2021, Dr. Benjamin Liliav performed a combined liposuction with fat transfer to the buttocks and a tummy tuck during which he removed more than 1,000 cubic centimeters of supernatant fat. Florida code prohibits removing that volume in combination with an abdominoplasty, and the complaint warned the violation could jeopardize Xiluet’s office surgery license.9Yahoo News. No Required Emergency Anesthesia Training State records show the case resulted in “obligations imposed” on Liliav, though the specific terms are not publicly available online.11Florida Department of Health. Enforcement Actions for Benjamin Liliav
Xiluet also operated a second location at 8350 SW Eighth Street under the name Surgery Center of Westchester, Inc., run by the same president, Monica Vazquez. The state placed that facility under a 30-day suspension for safety violations that included lack of anesthesia and emergency training compliance, no transfer agreements, no risk management program, and withholding patient records from inspectors. The main Xiluet location at 8396 SW Eighth Street stayed open at the time, with its own pending complaints and lawsuits.12Miami Herald. State Suspends Miami Plastic Surgery Center
Dr. Kosowski’s Unrelated Murder Charge
Dr. Kosowski, the surgeon in the Hernandez case, was later arrested and charged with first-degree murder in a matter unconnected to Xiluet: the killing of Pinellas County attorney Steven Cozzi at his Largo law office in 2023. Cozzi’s body has not been recovered. As of May 2025, Kosowski was facing the death penalty, had lost his legal team after accusing them of fraud and forgery, and had been assigned a public defender. A pre-trial hearing was scheduled for June 25, 2025.13WFLA. Plastic Surgeon Charged With Murder Still Does Not Have Legal Representation
Dissolution of the Corporation
Xiluet Plastic Surgery, Inc. filed for voluntary dissolution on July 3, 2025, according to Florida Division of Corporations records. Monica Vazquez was listed as the sole officer and manager.14Florida Division of Corporations. Xiluet Plastic Surgery Inc. Detail Anyone considering a claim against the clinic should be aware that the corporate entity no longer exists, and that Xiluet, through counsel in the Hernandez matter, said it carried no insurance.