A Riverside County woman has been convicted of second-degree murder for the death of a Malibu resident who suffered fatal complications after a cosmetic injection procedure. The case marks the second time Libby Adame, 55, has been held criminally responsible for a death tied to unlicensed silicone injections.
Jurors in Los Angeles reached the verdict Thursday, finding Adame guilty of second-degree murder and of practicing medicine without proper credentials in the March 2024 death of 59-year-old actor Cindyana Santangelo. Authorities said Santangelo suffered an embolism after receiving silicone injections at her home. Adame, who was arrested in May, now faces a possible sentence of 15 years to life when she returns to court for sentencing on November 5.
Prosecutors argued that Adame, known by clients as “the butt lady,” was fully aware of the dangers of her cosmetic procedures. Just a year earlier, she had been convicted of involuntary manslaughter and other charges in the 2019 death of 26-year-old Karissa Rajpaul, who died after receiving similar injections at a home in Sherman Oaks. Adame’s daughter, Alicia Galaz, was also convicted in that earlier case for assisting in the illegal procedure. Despite receiving a prison sentence that was later reduced due to the time they were electronically monitored while not in custody, Adame allegedly continued performing unlicensed work after her release.
During closing arguments, prosecutors reminded jurors that a judge had explicitly warned Adame in 2024 that any further death linked to her injections could result in a murder charge. They said she ignored that warning, continuing to offer procedures that had already proven deadly. Deputy District Attorney Lee Cernok urged jurors to hold Adame accountable for repeating the same conduct that had previously claimed a life.
At trial, Santangelo’s husband testified that his wife began convulsing shortly after the procedure and that Adame fled the home as paramedics were called. He has also filed a civil lawsuit, accusing Adame of posing as a trained medical professional and using unsafe, unapproved substances that led to his wife’s preventable death.
Adame’s defense team insisted she was not the one who performed the injections that day. Her attorney, J. Michael Flanagan, said she was acting only as a consultant for doctors authorized to perform cosmetic procedures in Mexico, not administering any injections herself. Adame testified that the marks found on Santangelo’s body were inconsistent with her own technique, maintaining that she was wrongly accused.
The jury ultimately rejected that account, concluding that Adame was responsible for Santangelo’s death. Prosecutors described the verdict as a reminder of the risks posed by unlicensed cosmetic practices and the repeated warnings Adame chose to ignore.
Sources: NBC News, Los Angeles Times
