The Surge of 'Cosmetic Con Artists': Turning Homes into Drug Labs to Fund Botox and Boob Job Addictions

BOOB jobs, lip filler, Botox and Turkey teeth are now seen as beauty staples rather than luxury treatments just for celebs and the super-rich.

But the cost of looking good soon stacks up with women turning to crowdfunding and to fund their latest nips and tucks.

Nicole Hutchinson was caught smuggling cannabisCredit: Cavendish The mum-of-three spent money on lip fillers and eyelash extensionsCredit: Cavendish

And now it seems increasing numbers of women are being lured into a life of to pay for them to go under the knife.

Mum-of-three Nicole Hutchinson smuggled £100,000 worth of into the UK to fund her “obsession” with lip filler, eyelash extensions and hair dye.

The drugs male from Bradford was jailed for 23 months in February after she was caught at Airport with two suitcases filled with the Class B drug.

The 25-year-old was stopped and arrested alongside accomplice Kia Underwood, 28, after a week-long trip to last March.

Manchester Crown Court heard Hutchinson had been offered £10,000 to help smuggle almost 50kg of cannabis into the country.

She admitted drug smuggling but insisted she had been directed by dad-of-two Underwood and another unknown man.

The beauty obsessive pleaded for a suspended sentence after telling the court she did it to help cover thousands of pounds worth of debt.

The court heard she had splurged on lip fillers, eyelash extensions and hair dye treatments because she “was obsessed with how she looks”.

Criminologist Alex Iszatt says pressure from to look good may be influencing some young women to make bad decisions in the pursuit of beauty.

She says: “Many women who turn to crime to fund cosmetic procedures don’t see themselves as criminals; by the time they act, they’ve already justified what they’re doing. They are usually young, often under financial or social pressure, and have convinced themselves that self-improvement is something they deserve.

“Social media plays a huge role in shaping minds. It nurtures insecurity and the feeling of shame – that everyone can see how unworthy you are- it’s a constant intrusion, asking if you are good enough or special enough, and inundates you with images of better people living a life you could have.

“All you need is money, looks and status and social media tells you that you need it right now, regardless of the consequences. Social media can even help you get it, making crime look glamorous and attainable, offering tips on how to commit benefit fraud, run a scam, or grow cannabis in a bedroom.”

Nicole Hutchinson had racked up thousands in debtsCredit: Cavendish She was given a suspended sentenceCredit: Cavendish

Black Widow

But it isn’t just young women who are being lured into a criminal lifestyle to splurge on themselves.

Shameless fraudster Pamela Gwinnett stole £300k from a vulnerable pensioner, spending it on and other luxuries.

She isolated 89-year-old Joan Green from her family while pretending to act as her carer during the Covid .

She convinced Joan to hand over power of attorney to her – and then raided her savings.

‘Black widow’ Gwinnett, 63, splurged on cosmetic treatments like Botox as well as a flash car, lavish meals and mortgage payments.

She fled to Tenerife in breach of her bail conditions whilst awaiting trial. She was sentenced in her absence to six years for theft and fraud by abuse of position.

Sadly Joan from Chorley, Lancs, passed away in 2022. UK authorities are still trying to extradite Gwinnett from .

Pamela Gwinnit stole £300k from a vulnerable pensionerCredit: Supplied Victim Joan Green has sadly died since being swindled out of her savingsCredit: MEN Media

Alex Iszatt says: “When crimes are committed, the excitement of getting a huge cash windfall to spend is intoxicating, it can feel like free money which makes high-visibility purchases like cosmetic surgery easier to justify. It’s also a calling card to others that you’re doing well -a success – you become the influencer and the circle continues.”

In 2018 fraudster Tammy Gunter claimed £76,000 in benefits which she used to pay for a boob job and holidays to America.

She told Caerphilly Council she was single when she was in fact married to Neil Hart, 46.

Gunter and Hart, from Blackwood, lived a “lavish lifestyle” using the tax credits she claimed between 2007 and 2016, Merthyr Tydfil Crown Court heard.

A court ordered her to repay £23,358 of the £76,008 claimed.

In 2022 another brazen benefits cheat defrauded the taxpayer for £10,000 while lavishing cash on a boob job, other cosmetic surgery and a Peloton exercise bike.

Former air stewardess Mercedes Bradley, 31, claimed Universal Credit even though she had £48,000 in a secret bank account where she received payments from ‘ex-boyfriends’ – one of whom transferred her more than £30,000.

Bradley, from Cinderford, Gloucestershire, admitted failing to declare capital after DWP investigators caught up with her, bringing her spending spree to an end. She was sentenced to 150 hours of unpaid work.

Tammy Gunter collected thousands in benefitsCredit: WNS She and her husband lived a lavish lifeCredit: WNS

Alex Iszatt often people start small with botox or teeth whitening, but then the confidence boost from that can lead to people craving more and more tweakments that they can’t necessarily afford.

“Social media doesn’t just show celebrities with perfect bodies; it shows people just like you, the woman next door, the girl you went to school with, the influencer who seems to have it all, they all have the teeth, the skin, the body.” she says.

“And a boob job isn’t some unattainable luxury anymore, it doesn’t cost a fortune. The world that once belonged to the rich and famous has opened up to everyone. So why shouldn’t you have something too?

“Many dip a toe in with small, affordable procedures, Botox or teeth whitening and they see the results straight away, which boost confidence and gain attention.

“That feeling triggers the same dopamine hit seen in gambling or addiction. The desire for that feeling again overtakes sense, and the bank balance. They will borrow some money, try gambling, or take out another credit card, and it escalates. Soon they may be committing benefit fraud, workplace theft, online scams, getting into debt with the wrong person, and having to sell or smuggle drugs. The first crime is always the hardest but once that barrier is crossed it’s easier to repeat, until there’s no way out.”

Cannabis farm

In 2013 gangster’s moll Julie Coyne treated herself to a boob job with drugs money.

Cops found receipts for thousands of pounds of plastic surgery and teeth-whitening when they raided the Gateshead home she shared with drug dealer boyfriend George Kelly.

Kelly, 39, was jailed for two-and-a-half years, while Coyne, 39, was given a six-month community order and ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work. Both were convicted of conspiracy to supply cocaine.

And Alex Iszatt says for some women involved in crime, cosmetic surgery can be a way to flaunt their ill-gotten gains and status.

She explains: “Not every woman in these situations commits crime specifically to fund surgery; some are already living in worlds where crime is simply part of life. Even so, the desire for transformation remains deeply felt. In those environments, appearance still signals status and belonging, but underneath that, cosmetic surgery can become one of the few choices that feels entirely theirs.

Kirsty Hartley grew cannabis to find her boob jobCredit: SWNS:South West News Service

A year earlier a mum-of-two really boobed when she let her home be turned into an illegal cannabis factory to pay for bigger breasts.

Kirsty Hartley, 23, ended up getting busted instead when police raided her home and found 32 cannabis plants growing in her bedroom.

A court heard that a drug dealer had promised Hartley the £8,000 she needed for a breast enlargement if she grew the plants for him.

But police seized the £16,000 crop before she could go under the surgeon’s knife. The plants were found under a high-powered light and fans and filters in the bedroom of her house in Withywood, . Hartley was given an 18-month community order after admitting production of the Class B drug.

Alex Iszatt says: “Some women are pushed further by friends or partners who take advantage of their insecurity to get them to carry out illegal activities, which can lead to financial dependence or emotional entanglement.

Rachael Martin stole £46k and treated herself to surgical enhancementsCredit: SWNS:South West News Service The aspiring model spent £4,000 on the boob jobCredit: SWNS:South West News Service She was jailed for a yearCredit: SWNS:South West News Service

“Insecurity is the thread that runs through every single scenario, whether it is social media pressure, a coercive partner, trauma, or body dysmorphic disorder, these women are chasing a feeling; the feeling of finally being enough.”

In 2012 former Bank clerk Rachael Martin was jailed after stealing £46,000 from her employer to fund breast augmentation surgery and liposuction.

The 24-year-old aspiring model from St Austell, , “spent money like water” after getting a job with the bank, Truro Crown Court was told.

When arrested, Martin told police she had earned the money working as a prostitute. She later admitted theft and was jailed for 52 weeks.

The mother-of-one is believed to have splashed out £4,000 on breast surgery and £1,700 on expensive dental work, including treatment to whiten her teeth.