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NEW ORLEANS, LA, May 8, 2014 (LifeSiteNews.com) – New Orleans law enforcement is asking for the public’s help in hunting down a transsexual who is wanted on charges of negligent homicide after a man he injected in the hips and buttocks with black market silicone slipped into a coma and died.

Larry Bernard, 33, who goes by the name Armani Nicole Davenport, reportedly injected 25-year-old Brad Hall (who called himself Breneisha) with the substance on October 24 of last year.  Afterward, Hall complained of difficulty breathing and sought treatment at Louisiana State University’s hospital, where he fell into a coma before ultimately dying January 1.

Bernard was arrested in November on charges of negligent injury, but was later released.  Then, when Hall died in January, the hospital ruled the death was due to “natural causes,” and the coroner in Hall’s home parish of Jefferson signed off on it.

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However, when the Orleans Parish coroner reviewed the autopsy reports and hospital records two weeks ago, he declared Hall’s death a homicide, allowing local police to reopen the case.

“It's a foreign body, and it was injected into [his] body,” said Chief Investigator John Gagliano. “You can't just walk around and give anyone an injection.”

New Orleans police believe Bernard may be living in Dallas, Texas.  In a news release, they said he “travels the southeast gay pageantry circuit and has won several titles and also [is] practicing medical procedures without proper credentials.”  Police are urging anyone who might know where to find him to come forward immediately.

This is not the first case of its kind in recent years.  Black market buttocks injections are a trend that has become so troubling to the medical community that the American Society of Plastic Surgeons launched an awareness campaign about the issue. 

In Philadelphia, a woman calling herself the “Black Madam” was charged with third degree murder after a woman died following one of her “pumping parties,” where she injected multiple clients with black market silicone.

In Florida, another transsexual, Oneal Ron Morris, made national headlines as the “Toxic Tush” after using a combination of Fix-a-Flat, rubber cement, mineral oil and caulk to inject clients – mostly other transsexuals – with more feminine-looking curves. He is currently serving a one-year prison term in Florida after pleading guilty to practicing medicine without a license, and still faces manslaughter charges, since at least one client died from the illegal procedures.

In almost every reported case of death due to black market silicone injections, the death was caused by migration of the silicone to the lungs.  Other serious complications have also been reported, including infections, hardening of the injection sites, and persistent abscesses.

Dr. Robert X. Murphy, president of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, told the New York Times that silicone-based products like Fix-a-Flat and bathroom caulk are in no way similar to the medical-grade silicone found in silicone implants, and that even if medical-grade silicone could be found on the black market, it would be best not to inject it directly into the body.

“This type of procedure should be performed by someone who knows the anatomy, knows the benefits and complications and knows how to take care of someone should a complication arise,” Murphy said. “At the minimum someone should look toward a physician.”