JACKSON Miss. (Reuters) – A Mississippi woman convicted of murder for administering an unlicensed silicone buttocks injection to a patient who later died was sentenced on Tuesday to life in prison.
Tracey Lynn Garner, 54, performed the unlicensed injection in 2012 in her Jackson home on 37-year-old Karima Gordon, who fell ill immediately after the procedure and died a few days later.
A jury last week found Garner guilty of depraved-heart murder.
Prosecutors argued during the trial that Garner was motivated by greed.
Garner faces a separate trial in the death of Marilyn Hale, an Alabama woman who authorities say died under similar circumstances two years earlier.
Lee McDivitt, an investigator for the Mississippi Attorney General’s Office, testified during the trial that he found a large bottle of silicone and syringes in Garner’s home that were labeled “veterinary use only.”
Garner, who is transgender, was formerly named Morris Garner.
In January, Natasha Stewart, 40, also known as “Pebbelz Da Model,” was sentenced to seven years in prison for having referred Gordon to Garner and falsely identifying her as a nurse.
Hinds County Circuit Court Judge Winston Kidd also sentenced Garner on Tuesday to five years in prison for wire fraud conspiracy in connection with the case, court records show.
John Colette, Garner’s defense attorney, did not immediately return messages seeking comment