Port St. Lucie Woman Gets 3 Years for Running Illegal Med Spa in Backyard Shed

A Port St. Lucie woman who injected Botox and performed cosmetic procedures on clients inside a backyard shed was sentenced to three years in prison after one of her customers developed partial facial paralysis.

Rosa Mena, 50, received the prison term plus five years of probation following her conviction on nine charges, including three counts of aggravated battery causing bodily harm and three counts of practicing medicine without an active license, officials said.

The case began in May 2025 when a victim reported to Port St. Lucie Police that her face had stopped moving properly. The woman told investigators she had paid $325 for 62 units of Botox at a makeshift facility Mena called "Miracle Hand and Spa," operating out of a shed on the 5000 block of Northwest Coosa Drive.

Coworkers had referred her to Mena after receiving treatments themselves — a word-of-mouth chain that allowed the illegal operation to grow undetected, investigators said.

When the victim reported the paralysis, Mena refunded her money but pressed her to return for a vitamin injection to "reverse" the damage. The paralysis did not resolve. When the victim demanded to see a medical license, Mena produced an altered phlebotomy certificate that had expired in February 2024, records show. Mena then told the woman she was a doctor licensed in the Dominican Republic.

She was not.

A multi-agency investigation involving Port St. Lucie Police, city code enforcement, the building department, the business tax office, and the Florida Department of Health culminated in a search warrant for Mena's residence. Detectives found medical beds, fat-sculpting machines, laser hair removal equipment, laser liposuction machines, and filler and Botox injection devices inside the shed — a fully outfitted, unlicensed cosmetic clinic hidden behind a residential fence.

Mena was also charged with fraud and use of a two-way communications device to facilitate a felony, public records indicate. Investigators did not specify how many total clients received procedures at the shed or whether additional victims have come forward.

Unlicensed cosmetic providers operating through referral networks and social channels carry serious physical risk, health officials have said broadly of such cases. Residents can verify a Florida health care provider's license at the Department of Health's online practitioner search portal.

This article was generated with AI assistance using publicly available information. It was reviewed and approved by a human editor before publication. TC Sentinel uses AI writing tools in accordance with FTC guidelines.