US News
Unlicensed Miami surgery suspect vanishes days before trial
Joao Batista Cunha De Araujo faces 14 charges in Miami-Dade County for practicing medicine without a license, theft, and fraud.
The short version
- Joao Batista Cunha De Araujo, a 57-year-old Brazilian national facing 14 charges related to unlicensed plastic surgery, vanished after his ankle monitor triggered a tamper alert on August 1.
- A Miami judge revoked Araujo's house arrest, issued a new arrest warrant, and approved full extradition.
- Although Araujo surrendered his passport under court order, sources cited in reporting indicate he is believed to have fled to Brazil.
- U.S. Marshals and Brazilian authorities have not publicly commented on efforts to locate him.
Key facts
- Joao Batista Cunha De Araujo faces 14 criminal counts, including 13 felonies, in Miami-Dade County for alleged unlicensed plastic surgery, theft, and fraud.[Fox News]
- The Florida Department of Health confirmed that neither Araujo nor his co-defendant wife held a medical license in the state.[Fox News]
- Araujo's ankle monitor generated a tamper alert on August 1, three days before his trial was scheduled to begin.[Fox News]
- Officers dispatched to Araujo's last known location on the Bay Harbor Islands could not find him or the ankle monitor.[Fox News]
- A Miami judge revoked Araujo's house arrest, issued a new warrant for his arrest, and authorized full extradition.[Fox News]
- Araujo had surrendered his passport pursuant to a court order after Judge Tanya Brinkley denied his request to return to Brazil prior to trial.[Fox News]
- Araujo's wife and co-defendant was deported earlier in the year after facing seven charges connected to the case.[Fox News]