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Man Accused Of Pretending To Be A Doctor, Injuring Patients

By Tom Mustin

DENVER (CBS4)- A man has been accused and charged with impersonating a medical doctor and illegally performing medical procedures without a license.

Carlos Hernandez Fernandez has been charged with four counts of second-degree assault, two counts of unlawful sexual contact, four counts of criminal impersonation, four counts of unauthorized practice of a physician and one count of child abuse.

Carlos Hernandez Fernandez
Carlos Hernandez Fernandez (credit: Denver DA)

Hernandez Fernandez sprinted up the stairs at the Denver County courthouse- refusing to talk about the charges against him.

"Do you want to say anything?" asked CBS4's Tom Mustin. "Nothing. Nothing."

Carlos Hernandez Fernandez
Carlos Hernandez Fernandez (credit: CBS)

The 36-year-old Denver man is facing 14 felony counts for allegedly impersonating a doctor and performing procedures on unsuspecting women.

"This was a man who was holding himself up to be a licensed doctor and he wasn't, and he was performing surgery and procedures without a license," said Lynn Kimbrough with the Denver DA's Office.

Denver District Attorney Mitch Morrissey alleges that Fernandez has been portraying himself as a medical doctor since at least January 2015 to Aug. 4 and has been performing medical procedures, mostly cosmetic, without a license at a Denver clinic called Hernandez Fernandez Care clinic at 424 South Federal Boulevard.

Fake Doctor Arrested MAP
(credit: CBS)

"These were tummy tucks, liposuction,' said Kimbrough.

The DA's office investigated a complaint by a woman, that lead to four other victims- some who have suffered permanent damage.

"They've suffered serious bodily injury because of the procedures he's alleged to have performed. In addition, two of those, the allegations are he touched them inappropriately," said Kimbrough.

FAKE DOCTOR
Hernandez Fernandez Care (credit: CBS)

A Denver police officer entered the clinic while a procedure was being performed- and arrested Hernadez Fernadez on the spot.

As Hernandez Fernandez left the courtroom surrounded by media, the DA's office says this case may be far from over.

"There's some concern that there could be some additional victims. The investigators who have been working on this case say it appears that he may have been holding himself as a doctor in particular to women who are undocumented and perhaps primarily Spanish-speaking," said Denver DA spokeswoman Lynn Kimbrough. "And so we may have folks who are not willing to come forward or didn't know how to come forward."

Carlos Hernandez Fernandez
Carlos Hernandez Fernandez (credit: CBS)

CBS4 has learned Hernandez Fernandez did have a license to be a surgical assistant at some local hospitals.

Hernandez Fernandez has been released from custody on $2,000 bond and appeared in court on Tuesday afternoon to be formally advised of the charges.

The judge ordered Hernandez Fernandez to surrender his passport and have a GPS monitoring device placed on his ankle. He will appear before a judge on Sept. 20 for a preliminary hearing.

The Denver DA's office believes it is possible there may be more victims and urge anyone who thinks they may have been a victim to call the DA's office at 720-913-9000.

Tom Mustin is CBS4's Weekend Anchor. He has been with CBS4 since 2002, and is always looking for great story ideas. Connect with Tom on Facebook or follow him on Twitter @TomCBS4.

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