Evita Nicole (Eva) Sarmonikas, 29, died after suffering cardiac arrest while being operated on by Dr Victor Ramirez at the Hospital Quirurgico del Valle, in Mexicali on Friday March 20.
Victor Ramirez is understood to be the same plastic surgeon who was involved in a 2012 legal dispute with Kim Kardashian after using the reality star’s bikini photo on a billboard advertising his practice, without her permission.
The young woman travelled to the capital of the Mexican state of Baja California with her boyfriend to have a procedure which was described as a ‘simple cosmetic surgery’.
Ms Sarmonikas’ procedure was expected to last for 2½ hours, followed by a two month recovery, according to his website.
It was later confirmed by her cousin, Nick Tsagalias, who spoke to the Gold Coast Bulletin, that her surgery was for buttock implants, a story that has also been verified by a second family member.
The cost to return the woman’s body to Australia could climb up to $20,000 or more because she had not taken out any travel insurance, while the Australian government cannot provide financial, legal, or medical assistance.
The Department of Foreign Affairs, however, consulted with the family to travel urgently to Mexico and organise an independent autopsy.
“The Australian Embassy has been clear on not allowing her body to leave Mexicali, or allowing her little body to be cremated before an independent autopsy and external opinion is sought,” her sister Andrea Sarmonikas wrote on Facebook.
“We will not be providing further details owing to privacy considerations,” a department spokeswoman said.
“There have been no answers and their only offer of ‘co-operation’ was an urgency to return her to us in the form of ashes. The Australian Embassy has strongly advised we do not allow this to happen,” the family explained.
Her relatives and friends have therefore established a Gofundme account to ensure her body is returned to them, even though the hospital involved has shrugged off responsibility due to Miss Sarmonikas signing a pre-surgery waiver.
“Her perfect and whole soul was not strong enough in light of a world that constantly bombarded her with an urgency to demand more from her self and her body,” they wrote on Facebook.
“This was not the way to go home, no woman should risk death to improve on perfection.
“Don’t listen to a world that is hungry to fill your insecurities with poison. Stop feeding an industry that hates humans, especially women in the natural state and their perfect birth bodies.”
