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Mum Of 3 Hospitalised With Bullet-like Holes After Agonising BBL

Published

1 year ago

September 10, 2024

Editor

A mum-of-three has been left with “bullet wound’ holes in her bum after an agonising Brazilian Butt Lift she bought on Facebook.

Melissa Crawford, 30, had always been self-conscious of her “flat” backside and when childbirth left her looking like an “ironing board”, she began searching for ways to feel more confident in her body.

While scrolling through Facebook, she came across a salon in her local city of Belfast that was offering customers a “Liquid Brazilian Butt Lift” (BBL) for £1700, which involves plumping out the buttock tissue with injections of dermal filler.

Ms Crawford underwent the non-surgical procedure in May this year, alongside facial filler, but she suffered extreme complications.

Ms Crawford had a litre of filler injected into her backside with a giant needle usually used for liposuction procedures. She claims she was never told to sign any documents or shown details of the products being put into her.

Just 24 hours after the procedure, which she says was more painful than childbirth, abscesses began growing on her bottom.

A liquid BBL is different from a traditional procedure, which involves transferring fat from other areas of the body, such as the hips or stomach.

“I have always been really self conscious about my bum because it’s quite flat,” Ms Crawford said.

“Growing up I was more of a boob girl than a bum girl and then I had kids and my boobs went. I just look like an ironing board.”

Although she had never heard of the salon before and only saw a few Facebook posts from the beautician, not many places offered the procedure so she decided to go with it.

The beautician reassured her, explaining she had done the procedure on herself.

“She did the bum filler first. She just asked if I was allergic to anything but I didn’t have to sign anything,” Ms Crawford said.

“I remember panicking here as I didn’t think this was a good sign but I wanted the treatment done so badly.

“She didn’t show me what she was going to use and didn’t show me any of the expiry dates on the products.

“She just got a big see-through bag with pre-filled syringes. It was so heavy and massive.

“She injected me with lidocaine [for numbing] in a few spots on my bum.

“It looked like a lipo needle. I could feel it and didn’t think I’d be able to do it.

“She started crunching. It sounded like rocks being crunched together and she told me it was just her breaking away fat from the skin. It was excruciating and sweat was lashing off me.

“She filled one cheek and then filled the other side. She had suggested a litre of filler in my bum.

“I was stuck to the bed in sweat. My clothes were soaked and I was biting my hand.

“It was excruciating. When she was done, I was so relieved. I felt like I was going to pass out.”

After the procedure the beautician told Ms Crawford she could sit down, but she was in too much pain.

“She said it was just swelling and I would need to lay on my stomach for the first night but then I would be okay,” Ms Crawford added.

Ms Crawford claims she reached out to the aesthetician about the pain swelling she was experiencing but her concerns were ignored, she said.

After being prescribed antibiotics by her GP to bring down a fever, she reached out to another aesthetician who told her to go straight to hospital in case of life-threatening sepsis.

“I felt constantly lightheaded and I couldn’t eat. Even with the medicine given by the doctor, I was waking up in the middle of the night and sweat was lashing off me.

“I was in agony. It was like this horrible throb and I felt like somebody had just pushed a brick in my bum that was scolding.”

On May 21, Ms Crawford underwent surgery to have the filler drained from her body and abscesses removed.

She says she was left with two “gaping” holes in her backside and “hip dips” all the way around her bottom.

She recalled: “The surgeon came down and told me he needed to remove this [the filler] now as it was in my bloodstream.

“I was rushed in for emergency surgery and I came out with two holes in my bum.

“They were massive and this is where they had removed the abscesses from.

“I had to have my holes packed every day. It looked like I had two massive stab or bullet wounds [in my bum].

“One of the holes was two inches deep and the other one was slightly smaller.

“I was devastated. At the time, I was just relieved to get it [the filler] out and recover from this.

“But as time went on, I had big massive dents in it.

“Where your bum naturally fills out, I have two gaping holes and dents in it so it looks like I have hip dips all the way around my bum now and it looks horrendous.”

As well as her liquid BBL, Ms Crawford claims the facial filler carried out by the beautician left her looking like “Quasimodo”.

She said: “My eye was droopy. ‘It was causing my eyelash extensions to point downwards and I couldn’t see and it felt so heavy. I felt like Quasimodo.

“I couldn’t function. I couldn’t drive or speak to people because I felt a mess.”

Ms Crawford says the whole experience has put her off getting filler for life and is now warning others about her own physical and mental repercussions following her treatment.

“I can’t wear jeans or dresses. I just wear baggy clothes now. I can’t go in for any kind of surgery now to fix it so I’m stuck with this for life,” she said.

“It was my biggest insecurity and now I feel stupid. It breaks my heart. It has put me off filler for life. It’s given me the scare I needed.

“They [the holes] are healing well. But they are massive and take up most of the side of my bum and they are hideous and I will be permanently scarred from it.”

Headline

Aircraft Crashes In Owerri With Four Persons Onboard

Published

18 hours ago

December 17, 2025

Editor

Photo: File copy

A Cessna 172 aircraft with registration number 5N-ASR, operated by Skypower Express, has crashed at the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport, Owerri, Imo State.

The aircraft had departed Kaduna International Airport en route to Port Harcourt International Airport before diverting to Owerri after the crew declared an emergency.

The crash occurred at about 8:00 pm on the airport premises, with four passengers and crew members onboard.

Confirming the incident, the Director, Public Affairs and Family Assistance of the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB), Mrs. Bimbo Oladeji, said the agency had been notified of the crash.

According to the NSIB, the aircraft crashed on the approach area of Runway 17, but no fatalities have been recorded so far.

The statement said: “Following the occurrence, airport emergency services were successfully activated and arrived on site promptly. Reports indicate that there was no post-crash fire, and the runway remains active for flight operations, with other aircraft taking off safely after the incident.

“Efforts are currently underway to coordinate the recovery and evacuation of the distressed aircraft from the crash site to allow for a detailed wreckage examination.”

The NSIB said it has officially activated its investigation protocols in line with its statutory mandate

The Director-General of NSIB, Capt. Alex Badeh Jr., sympathised with the management of Skypower Express over the incident and expressed relief that no lives were lost.

Badeh Jr. added that the Bureau’s investigation team is already coordinating with relevant authorities to secure the crash site and commence a detailed investigation into the cause of the accident.

Two days ago, 11 persons narrowly escaped death as a private jet crash-landed at Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano, on Sunday morning.

The occupants, including passengers and cabin crew, were safely evacuated amid an intense atmosphere, eyewitnesses told The Guardian.

The private jet, owned by Flybird Aviation, crash-landed at about 9:30 a.m. while approaching Kano Airport en route to Abuja.

The incident attracted urgent attention, with emergency staff and other stakeholders converging at the runway to render rescue operations.

The management of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) is yet to release an official statement on the incident. Unofficial sources disclosed that the passengers have been taken to an unknown destination.

Several aircraft incidents have occurred at Kano Airport, with several lives lost.

The last incident occurred in May 2002, when an EAS Airline aircraft departed the runway at Aminu Kano International Airport at 1:29 p.m. local time en route to Lagos.

Headline

Musk Breaks Record As First Person Worth Over $600 Billion

Published

21 hours ago

December 16, 2025

Editor

Elon Musk, Chief Executive Officer of SpaceX, Tesla, and xAI, has reached a new personal wealth milestone, surpassing a net worth of $600 billion, driven primarily by a recent valuation increase of SpaceX.

The development makes Musk the first individual in history to exceed the US$600 billion threshold.

According to Bloomberg’s Billionaires Index, Musk’s net worth stood at approximately $638 billion as of 15 December 2025, with the increase largely attributed to SpaceX, which was recently valued at around $800 billion following an insider share sale.

The privately held aerospace company, based in Starbase, Texas, is now considered the most valuable private firm globally, significantly boosting Musk’s personal holdings.

Musk’s stake in Tesla, estimated at roughly 12 per cent, is valued at nearly $200 billion, while his majority ownership of xAI Holdings is estimated at $60 billion.

Collectively, these assets place him on track to potentially approach US$700 billion, widening the gap between him and the world’s second-richest individual, former Google CEO Larry Page, valued at $265 billion.

The SpaceX valuation comes ahead of a projected public listing in 2026, which could see the company valued at approximately $1.5 trillion.

“Other shareholder meetings are snooze-fests but ours are bangers. Look at this. This is sick,” Musk said in November during Tesla’s shareholder meeting, referring to a performance-linked pay package approved by investors.

He added, “I super appreciate it.” The package, potentially worth up to US$1 trillion in stock, is tied to market-capitalisation and operational milestones over the next decade.

SpaceX’s Starlink satellite network has also contributed to investor confidence. The company continues to expand high-speed internet access to underserved regions worldwide.

Chad Gibbs, Vice President of Starlink Operations, stated that the satellite technology “bypasses the need to build massive amounts of infrastructure,” allowing broader and faster connectivity.

Musk’s ascent in personal wealth follows years of strategic risk-taking and long-term planning, with Tesla’s focus on electric vehicles, battery technology, and autonomous systems laying the foundation for his financial growth.

Analysts note that the combination of SpaceX’s soaring valuation, Tesla’s long-term incentives, and Musk’s diverse portfolio underpins his current status as the world’s wealthiest individual.

Headline

South Korea, Japan Protest China, Russia Aircraft Incursions

Published

1 week ago

December 10, 2025

Editor

South Korea and Japan reacted furiously on Wednesday after Chinese and Russian military aircraft conducted joint patrols around the two countries, with both Seoul and Tokyo scrambling jets.

South Korea said it had protested with representatives of China and Russia, while Japan said it had conveyed its “serious concerns” over national security.

According to Tokyo, two Russian Tu-95 nuclear-capable bombers on Tuesday flew from the Sea of Japan to rendezvous with two Chinese H-6 bombers in the East China Sea, then conducted a joint flight around the country.

The incident comes as Japan is locked in a dispute with China over comments Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi made about Taiwan.

The bombers’ joint flights were “clearly intended as a show of force against our nation, Defence Minister Shinjiro Koizumi wrote on X Wednesday.

Top government spokesman Minoru Kihara said that Tokyo had “conveyed to both China and Russia our serious concerns over our national security through diplomatic channels”.

Seoul said Tuesday the Russian and Chinese warplanes entered its air defence zone and that a complaint had been lodged with the defence attaches of both countries in the South Korean capital.

“Our military will continue to respond actively to the activities of neighbouring countries’ aircraft within the KADIZ in compliance with international law,” said Lee Kwang-suk, director general of the International Policy Bureau at Seoul’s defence ministry, referring to the Korea Air Defence Identification Zone.

South Korea also said it deployed “fighter jets to take tactical measures in preparation for any contingencies” in response to the Chinese and Russian incursion into the KADIZ.

The planes were spotted before they entered the air defence identification zone, defined as a broader area in which countries police aircraft for security reasons but which does not constitute their airspace.

Japan’s defence ministry also scrambled fighter jets to intercept the warplanes.

Beijing later Tuesday confirmed it had organised drills with Russia’s military according to “annual cooperation plans”.

Moscow also described it as a routine exercise, saying it lasted eight hours and that some foreign fighter jets followed the Russian and Chinese aircraft.

Since 2019, China and Russia have regularly flown military aircraft into South Korea’s air defence zone without prior notice, citing joint exercises.

In November last year, Seoul scrambled jets as five Chinese and six Russian military planes flew through its air defence zone.

Similar incidents occurred in June and December 2023, and in May and November 2022.

Meanwhile, Tokyo said Monday it had scrambled jets in response to repeated takeoff and landing exercises involving fighter jets and military helicopters from China’s Liaoning aircraft carrier as it cruised in international waters near Japan.

It also summoned Beijing’s ambassador after military aircraft from the Liaoning locked radar onto Japanese jets, the latest incident in the row ignited by Takaichi’s comments backing Taiwan.

Takaichi suggested last month that Japan would intervene militarily in any Chinese attack on the self-ruled island, which Beijing claims as its own and has not ruled out seizing by force.

AFP