Billionaire dies during penis enlargement procedure in Paris
Belgian-Israeli diamond tycoon Ehud Arye Laniado, 65, has died during a cosmetic procedure in Paris, prompting a high-profile court ruling that has seen two surgeons banned from medical practice and handed suspended prison sentences.
Laniado, founder of Omega Diamonds and a prominent figure in the global gemstone trade, suffered a fatal heart attack while undergoing a penis enlargement operation at the Saint-Honoré-Ponthieu clinic in the French capital in March 2019.
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Although the procedure itself was initially linked to his collapse, investigators later ruled the injection wasn’t the direct cause of death. A subsequent autopsy showed that Laniado died from cardiac hypertrophy and complications likely worsened by substances found in his system, including performance-enhancing and erectile dysfunction drugs.
A Paris court recently delivered its verdict in the case, sentencing the lead surgeon — identified as Guy H. — to 15 months in prison with his licence suspended, and imposing a 12-month suspended sentence on an assistant surgeon. Both practitioners were handed lifetime bans from practising medicine and fined €50,000 and €20,000 respectively.
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Prosecutors had initially examined the possibility of manslaughter but later downgraded the charges to include failure to assist a person in danger, drug-related offences, and practising medicine without a valid licence.
The court also uncovered significant professional irregularities at the clinic, including an assistant surgeon who was not registered with the French Medical Association and lacked recognised qualifications to practise in the country.
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Laniado was well known in elite circles, having once sold the rare 12.03-carat Blue Moon of Josephine diamond for a record price. Despite his success in the gemstone industry, his pursuit of cosmetic enhancement ended tragically and reignited discussion about the risks of elective procedures and unregulated clinic practices.
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