AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) – The house owners of a neighborhood magnificence faculty and adjoining Medi Spa are caught on digital camera by our I-TEAM packing up lower than per week after we uncovered complaints in opposition to the varsity.

We additionally uncovered weak enforcement from the state of Georgia.

We discovered each are costing college students months out of their lives and hundreds out of their financial institution accounts.

College students within the magnificence enterprise aren’t the one ones paying the value … it could possibly value customers too.

The house owners of Bryan Sexton Esthetics Institute and Rosebay Medi Spa advised us they’re shifting to downtown Augusta, out of Columbia County, the place they’re at the moment licensed to function each companies.

The Medi Spa provides all the things from facials and massages to IV remedy and the occasional Botox social gathering. We discovered the county has no report of a physician on employees serving as a medical director over the spa – a authorized requirement for a few of these providers.

Candice Harris nonetheless bears the scars from her time at Bryan Sexton Esthetics Institute. Emotionally scarred after entrusting the house owners together with her time and cash. Bodily scared after entrusting them together with her pores and skin.

She tells the I-TEAM she by no means obtained her a reimbursement. She by no means obtained her transcript from her time on the faculty.

And to this present day, practically a 12 months and a half later, Candice’s arm remains to be discolored after she says the proprietor, her teacher, gave her a medical grade peel to strive at home- with out coaching or instruction.

“I felt prefer it was not proper when my pores and skin wasn’t like peeling in any respect,” Candice explains. “And it was simply it was like a glue holding down, you realize, the useless pores and skin. It simply wouldn’t.”

The I-TEAM uncovered Liz Bryan or Liz Sexton was not even a licensed esthetics teacher on the time Candice enrolled at her faculty.

“She is hurting folks you realize and it isn’t simply college students,” says Candice.

Megan Carter tells the I-TEAM she set an appointment for a facial at Rosebay Medi Spa final summer time.

“I felt like that I had fireplace on my face. Prefer it was burning.”

Megan says Liz Bryan didn’t inform her she was doing a chemical peel till she put it on her face. “And I began to panic. So I hopped off the desk, and I’m holding this factor on my eyes, and I’m hysterical. I’m like, take this off my face. It’s burning prefer it hurts.”

Megan remembers there was a mirror proper behind the checkout.

“And I have a look at it, and I can inform that it’s burned throughout right here… She arms me like this white unmarked jar of like some cream. She says she combined up, and I’m like, what’s it? And she or he’s like, nicely, is your post-peel stuff. And I’m like, yeah, however what’s it? And she or he was like, nicely, I made it.”

Candice remembers related merchandise.

“It was her product that she formulated and on the time and I didn’t suppose something of it. I believed it was type of bizarre she was placing her personal labels on it. I’d go in and assist her for additional hours.”

Megan, nonetheless trusting Liz Bryan, says she took the unmarked product residence and began utilizing it on her face. “It isn’t serving to. Prefer it’s if something, it’s making it worse.”

Megan confirmed the I-TEAM the place she despatched messages and photos to Liz Bryan on Fb Messenger when Bryan stopped returning her textual content messages.

“Do you see what’s taking place? Is that this regular? Like what is going on?”

“And she or he was like, nicely, my physician should write you a prescription for like a medical grade hydroquinone like lightning cream,” remembers Megan. “And I used to be like, okay, when is the physician going to try this? She was like, nicely, I don’t know the physician’s schedule.”

Megan then went to see her physician. “He walks within the room, and he’s like, yeah, your face is burned. And I’m identical to, actually? And he’s like, yeah, it’s burned. Yeah, all proper right here. Yeah, it’s burned.”

Krystina Carrino is a licensed therapeutic massage therapist, esthetician, and esthetics teacher. She’s additionally the proprietor of Le Salon Day Spa.

“In case your pores and skin’s not correctly prepped for a few of these merchandise, you may trigger burning and flaking and hyperpigmentation and issues that not going to go away,” Krystina explains.

Krystina took Rachel Jackson as an apprentice after the previous scholar of Bryan Sexton Esthetics Institute graduated in 2021.

“I really like Rachel to loss of life, however her first facial, I cringed and she or he’s nicely, that’s how Elizabeth taught us.”

Solely after spending hundreds of {dollars} and months on the faculty did Rachel be taught her teacher, Liz Bryan, was not licensed to show. Which meant her college students didn’t qualify to take the state board examination after commencement.

Rachel remembers her expertise.

“How are we speculated to be taught merchandise and find out how to use merchandise and the way they’re working if nothing is labeled? We’re simply going off of what she tells us. She used this one for one, use this one for the second cleanse. You recognize, we’re simply doing what she advised us.”

And there’s extra. Candice remembers doing Botox events with Liz Bryan on the faculty/spa. She says there was no physician current.

The I-TEAM discovered the state Medical Composite board requires a medical director, which means a physician, to supervise Medi Spas providing providers like Botox and fillers.

Candice says in her time, she “by no means” noticed a physician there.

Megan additionally was not sure of a physician there. “I imply, to this present day, I do not know what this physician’s title is. I haven’t heard from the physician.”

The I-TEAM requested for the title of the medical director at Rosebay Medi Spa.  Columbia County advised us there isn’t any physician listed within the county’s data.

The I-TEAM discovered a particular posted on Rosebay’s Fb web page in October.

Krystina has severe questions after reviewing our findings. “And so why is she nonetheless open? I don’t I don’t even know. I don’t know. I don’t perceive.”

The I-TEAM’s Liz Owens noticed the house owners within the means of shifting final week.

Liz Owens: “Hello, Liz.”

Liz Sexton: “Hello.”

Liz Owens: “The place y’all going to?”

Liz Sexton: “Umm shopping for a constructing downtown.”

We discovered the varsity and spa practically empty after we went there once more this week.

Liz Owens: “The county advised me there was not physician serving as a medical director right here though Botox has been provided.”

Dwayne Sexton: “Alright.”

Liz Owens: “I used to be simply providing you with guys an opportunity to reply or…”

Dwayne Sexton: “I’ve nothing for you.”

Liz Owens: “You don’t? Okay.”

Dwyane Sexton: “I imply you’re an investigative reporter… apart from you simply fill within the gaps if you don’t know what’s occurring.”

We don’t know the place the house owners are going. Google now lists a brand new deal with for Rose Bay Medi Spa.

However they don’t personal this boarded-up constructing on Broad Road. The I-TEAM checked enterprise licenses too. However all we discovered was an outdated utility from 2019.

And we now have this response from Richmond County, “No cost was acquired. No allow was ever issued.”

“She fully disappeared off the face of the earth,” says Megan pissed off. “After I left that day, she was gone.”

Abandoning a path of shoppers and college students scarred by the ugly aspect of magnificence.

Former college students inform the I-TEAM an investigator with the state’s Legal professional Basic’s Workplace contacted them a couple of days after our earlier investigation into the wonder enterprise aired on Jan. 19, 2023. Carrino additionally advised our LIz Owens an investigator reached out to her too.

Carrino’s therapeutic massage remedy license was flagged by the state after she took on Liz Bryan’s former scholar, Rachel Jackson. The state advised her Bryan filed a criticism in opposition to her. Our first investigation into the Ugly Aspect of Magnificence aired in December.

You may search for licensed Estheticians right here. You may test laser and medical licenses right here.

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