A Manhattan doctor is suing Yelp commenters for calling him a quack online — where scores of reviews claim he waters down Botox, uses scratchy paper towels and operates out of a facility likened to a dungeon.
Board-certified physician Muhammad Mirza is suing four separate Yelp users for their seven combined one-star reviews, asking a Manhattan federal court judge to bar them from posting further and award him at least $1 million in damages.
The reviews variously accuse the doctor — who at the time of publication has a meager two-star rating — of pre-loading Botox into the syringes so he can dilute it, of injecting people in shady locations, of pushing more product on patients and of generally being a scam artist.
“I was shocked he has no professional room with proper chair. He just asked me to sit on a bench with full of brochures,” reads one review cited in the court papers, posted by someone with the username “Brian K” in December 2018.
“When he was done, just wipe off the bloods on my forehead with rough paper tower which can be found at public restroom! I just can’t believe this is even legal the way he operate.”
“Never Ever go to this horrible dungeon services!” the review continues. “Totally Scammmm.”
Another reviewer, posting under the username “Jen M.” in January 2019, questions the veracity of his medical license.
“Dr of what? A PhD in anthropology? Or maybe dance theory? Or perhaps economics?” the posting reads. “He travels all over the place, Long Island today, jersey tonight and Florida tomorrow afternoon. Shady doesn’t even begin to describe the experience. I haven’t seen a ‘Dr.’ travel this much since Dr. Baker in little house on the prairie.”
Mirza’s lawsuit says he does not water down the product, that he is a licensed doctor, that syringes of Botox come pre-loaded and that he does not inject expired Botox.
“Dr. Mirza does not ‘rip off’ his patients. Plaintiffs operate a legitimate business,” the court papers say. “As with many cosmetic treatments, patients often find that the results of Botox injections do not live up to their expectations.”
The Yelp users did not immediately return messages seeking comment.
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