A 38-year-old woman is behind bars after authorities say she operated an unlicensed plastic surgery recovery center out of an Airbnb in southwest Miami-Dade County, leaving several patients scrambling for care after her arrest.

Kerri Smith faces charges of operating an assisted living facility without a license and an organized scheme to defraud. Investigators say she collected more than $200,000 from clients seeking post-surgical care. Her arrest disrupted the recoveries of at least six women who were staying at the home after undergoing cosmetic procedures.

“I’m really disappointed. Extremely disappointed,” said Janell Dunn, one of the patients who traveled from Orlando for surgery and aftercare.

Dunn said that during her five-day stay, she saw about 12 women cycle through the property. She described chaos unfolding when deputies arrived to arrest a caretaker. “We were all looking at each other like, ‘What are we going to do now?’” Dunn said.

Authorities allege the operation was unsafe and poorly managed. In court, a prosecutor cited complaints of overcrowding, bug infestations, rodents, and improper handling of medical waste.

Despite those allegations, Smith told a judge she had been working to bring the business into compliance, stating, “I got educated. Hired a consultant.”

Patients, however, say they were left with little warning to find new accommodations after paying thousands of dollars for post-operative care. Dunn said she struggled physically in the aftermath, forced to move and lift items despite being in the early stages of recovery.

“I’ve been pushing, pulling, tugging, doing things I shouldn’t be doing at this point,” she said.

Some women booked hotel rooms after being forced out. Tonita Caban, a woman with experience caring for post-surgery patients, took in Dunn. Caban said she couldn’t turn Dunn away after hearing her story through a social media group for post-op patients. She calls Dunn an “angel”.

“And you’re here with me, and you’ll always be my little sister,” Caban told her. “Someone you can count on.” Caban said she is not charging Dunn for her stay, acknowledging the money she already lost to Smith’s now-shuttered operation.

Smith remained in custody at TGK on Wednesday evening.

In a city where menus can read like novellas and cocktails arrive with enough smoke, sparks and theatrics to qualify as performance art, a new Brickell restaurant is taking the opposite approach and betting that fewer choices might actually make dinner better.

At Allegro Ma Non Troppo, a new 38-seat Italian restaurant that recently opened at 1000 South Miami Avenue, you’ll find exactly 10 food items on the menu. Not 10 sections. Not 10 pages. Just 10 dishes, period.

The concept comes from a group of longtime restaurant industry colleagues who wanted to create something that feels more like an Italian grandmother’s dining room than a typical Miami restaurant. There are no reservations, no phone number and no sprawling menu. Instead, guests simply show up, grab a table and eat what the kitchen does best.

The menu follows a simple formula: four appetizers, three mains, two sides and one dessert. Among the highlights are a Caesar salad made using Caesar Cardini’s original 1924 dressing recipe from Tijuana, a Wagyu bolognese “lazy lasagna” layered with Italian sausage and slow-cooked ragù, a free-range chicken cotoletta alla Milanese and a whole branzino prepared with little more than olive oil, lemon and rosemary. And then, of course, there’s the shareable dessert course. Every main course is cooked in the restaurant’s single oven and there are no fryers anywhere in sight. 

What makes Allegro Ma Non Troppo particularly personal is the story behind it. The restaurant serves as a tribute to co-owner Carlos Galan’s mother, who died earlier this year at age 102. Many of her belongings now decorate the space, helping the restaurant feel more like a family home than a polished dining concept.

“The goal was never to create a perfect luxury restaurant,” Galan said. “It was to create a place where people feel genuinely welcomed, nourished, and emotionally connected the moment they walk through the door.”

Co-owner Vanessa Velez says the team hopes diners remember more than just what was on their plates. “We always want to touch the customer emotionally, because when you touch someone’s emotions, you leave a mark,” she said. “Our goal is to leave a lasting imprint on our guests’ hearts.”

Whether the 10-item menu becomes Miami’s next dining obsession remains to be seen. But in a neighborhood packed with restaurants competing to do more, Allegro Ma Non Troppo is making a compelling case for doing less.

A Miami biotech executive was followed into the skyscraper where he lived by the man, accused of pushing him off the building’s 25th floor, newly-released surveillance video shows. 

Justin Zelin, 35, was seen walking into Miami Beach’s 47-story Akoya Condominium with a bearded man Corey Hutterli, 37, following behind on Feb. 12 — three days before his death, NBC6 reported. 

Zelin, who was wearing a casual outfit, threw away some trash in a garbage can before walking up to the entry door in the high-rise condominium’s parking lot, unaware he would fall to his death.

Hutterli, who was wearing a bucket hat, was following closely behind, carrying bottles of alcohol.

Just three days later, Harvard graduate Zelin called 911 to report a disturbance. During the call, he ordered Hutterli to leave the apartment, WPLG reported.

Zelin, who had worked as a biotechnology equity research analyst at BTIG since January 2021, reportedly shouted, “Get away from me Sasha,” using a nickname Hutterli was known by.  

There was a bust-up and cops said, “During said physical altercation defendant Hutterli caused victim Zelin to perish due to blunt force trauma.”

Zelin’s body hit a path on the ground floor, according to surveillance video recorded eight minutes after the 911 call.

Hutterli’s defense team claimed Zelin “went over the balcony” after an alleged mental episode.

They claimed Zelin, who was identified as JZ in court documents, screamed at Hutterli in “what can only be described as a complete break with reality.”

“JZ can be heard ranting, claiming that he was killed by a homeless person, and insisting that he is dead.

“During this mental break, JZ ran in and out of the apartment, and then he went over the balcony of his 25th-floor condo and fell to his death.”

But the state of Hutterli’s body suggested something more sinister had happened. He had scratches on his cheek, and a cut on his thumb. 

He was also in what “appears to be an excited state, according to police.

“What’s going on?” a shoeless Hutterli asked one officer.

“Somebody, he freaked out, attacked me.” 

The cop asked Hutterli if he was alone, to which he replied, “No I don’t know where he is.
“I kept telling him to relax.” 

Hutterli then blurted out, “What is the situation? Did he jump?”

Cops then searched the apartment – which had items strewn inside – and they found Hutterli’s bucket hat. 

There were blood spatters on the rails, and clumps of Hutterli’s beard hair were also found. 

Blood was also found on Hutterli’s shirt – and they found ketamine in his bag. 

Hutterli was arrested on April 8 and faces a second-degree murder charge, which carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Cops were able to make an arrest after Zelin’s DNA was discovered on Hutterli’s jacket.

He also faces burglary with assault or battery, possession of a controlled substance, and drug paraphernalia charges.

Tributes, meanwhile, were paid to Zelin following his death.

“Justin was one of the best biotech analysts I have ever worked with,” friend Amit Jolly wrote on Linkedin. 

“His work was rigorous, thoughtful, and deeply coordinated.

“He had a rare ability to see around corners and articulate complex ideas with clarity and conviction. 

“Our field has lost an extraordinary mind, and many of us have lost a trusted voice and friend.”