BY PETER DAVIS
New York socialites have always tweaked their appearances for a more youthful look with everything from Botox to fillers. And slews of society types trekked to a decidedly unglamorous building on West 45th Street in Hell’s Kitchen – a far cry from Park Avenue – for what they believed was surprisingly inexpensive Botox. But what they didn’t realize was that their faces were being poked with “Faux-tox,” dangerously counterfeit Botox from China. Ouch!
Society’s secret weapon against aging? 54-year-old Joey Grant Luther, who ran JGL Aesthetics, a skincare spa offering Botox, fillers, lasers and other cosmetic procedures. Luther, a supposed former Wilhelmina model with silver hair, a buff physique and wide smile, was arrested on January 20th, charged with wire fraud, smuggling and crimes involving counterfeit drugs that prosecutors say were illegally imported from China. Grant, who is not a doctor and operated his office without the necessary medical license to inject Botox, is currently out on a $100,000 bond (secured by his second home in Miami) after forfeiting his passport and agreeing to wear a monitoring bracelet. He will be back in court this February. Danielle R. Sassoon, the U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York said Luther “knowingly purchased counterfeit Botox from China, injecting it into his clients and represented that the counterfeit Botox that he was peddling was genuine.”
Full disclosure: I visited Luther for Botox injections after being recommended by a friend with a smooth forehead and a knack for bargains. Unlike other Luther clients who experienced scary symptoms like double-vision, trouble swallowing and chewing, slurred speech, heart palpitations and lightheadedness, I left JGL Aesthetics with a furrow-free forehead. But wait – were those migraines I had caused by Luther’s budget Botox from China? “I am not shocked by the crimes of Joey Luther,” a fashion executive who visited JGL Aesthetics a few times told me. “We were all more than happy to pay so ridiculously little for Botox. However, when something is too good to be true, it usually is.”
Another socialite, a designer and regular habitué of the Casas – Cruz, Cipriani and Tua – told me that he knew something was afoul months before Luther was nabbed by authorities. “I went to see him and needed a retouch,” says the former client, who like most did not want his name mentioned. “He wasn’t available for months. I told Amex it was a fraud, and I Googled and there was a lawsuit from a woman where it went bad. Amex refunded my money.”
And it wasn’t just bogus Botox that was being sold. One man said that Luther even offered penis enlargements. “Joey tries to sell every guy on penis enlargement. I wonder if he ever messed up one of those people who would probably be too embarrassed to come forward. Can you imagine?”
Luther did have an affable manner. His office, below the penthouse where he lived, was clean and looked professional with medical-style treatment chairs. He even wore a white lab coat embroidered with “JGL Aesthetics” on the front. But he knew that what he was doing was illegal and told his staff to never photograph him giving procedures. “He was nice,” said the designer. “But something did happen once – my eye got swollen. He told me it was not because of the Botox. I went back and he just gave me eyedrops. I see now that many people had issues, and he would dismiss it and say it wasn’t the Botox.”
The complaint includes documentation showing that Luther knew he was buying tainted products. Although he promised clients that the products were manufactured by Allergan, the American company that produces Botox, there are online messages to his supplier in China where Luther complained: “You sold me bad Botox and my clients were in the hospital. I had to pay their bills and try to save my reputation. Do you know how much money I lost?” Luther then demanded his Chinese supplier ship him 41 bottles of the bogus Botox. He continued to inject patients until at least last July. In April, a client messaged Luther saying they had blurred vision after a Botox treatment. The client ended up in the emergency room for an M.R.I. brain scan. Somone else had an appointment with Luther at a new location in the West 20s that was cancelled the day after his arrest. “It’s just incredible to see he was practicing from a new location until the day the news broke.”
I’m in a group chat with other Luther clients that I named “Former Lutherans.” And though we laugh at the fact that we were all duped by a phony, Luther’s crimes are nothing to joke about. I feel lucky that I did not experience any side effects and did not end up in the emergency room. “Luther’s disregard for the health of his clients put all of his victims in harm’s way and, in some cases, caused life-threatening injuries,” said Sassoon. “I think he’s a terrible dude,” concluded one of my “Former Lutheran” chat buddies. “What he did to people was so bad. And then he doubled down and did it more. I felt bad for him at first, but not anymore.”
When you go to the JGL Aesthetics website, there is only a page that announces: “COMING SOON.” But for Joey Grant Luther the only thing coming soon is a possible prison sentence of up to 20 years.
The building in Hell’s Kitchen where Joey Grant Luther injected patients with phony Botox from China
