Women who accused Phoenix doc of botched surgeries want restraining order

Two metro Phoenix women who sued a Glendale doctor over allegations that he performed plastic surgeries while drunk and disfigured them now claim they've been threatened and fear for their safety.

Wendy Ellsworth and Alicia Armijo sued Dr. Bradley Becker last fall for medical negligence, battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress. Since then, they and their attorney, Robert Gregory, have been on the receiving end of threats, stalking and intimidation that have left them concerned about the safety of their families, according to documents filed with Maricopa County Superior Court on Feb. 15.

The women and their attorney want to meet with sheriff's deputies to discuss their safety and allegations of threats. They also are seeking a restraining order against Becker. In the meantime, Ellsworth asked a judge to make her lawsuit against Becker inactive for four months, while Armijo wants to dismiss her case.

"Because of the fear that Plaintiffs are presently experiencing regarding their personal safety, and their strong belief that either Dr. Becker or those acting on his behalf are seeking to intimidate Plaintiffs so that they will dismiss their action against him, Plaintiffs are not able to continue the instant action until they are able to coordinate recent events with the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office and to take whatever action is appropriate to secure their safety," Gregory wrote in a motion filed in Ellsworth's case.

In a motion for Armijo's case, Gregory wrote that Armijo doesn't want to continue her case while "pursuing her options with the Maricopa Sheriff's Office" but isn't "surrendering her claims against Dr. Becker.

"Plaintiff has expressed to her counsel her concern that continuing with this litigation will constitute an ongoing threat to her personally and will create additional emotional anxiety and fear," Gregory wrote in the motion.

Ellsworth and Armijo alleged in affidavits that since suing Becker, they have seen vehicles parked in front of their homes and, on one occasion, Armijo said she spotted Becker in a vehicle outside her home before he sped away. Gregory said he received a threatening phone call from an unknown number in which the callers said they knew who he was and demanded to know where he lived.

Becker denied the latest allegations in an affidavit filed on Wednesday.

"I have no information about or involvement in any of the alleged incidents of unknown persons allegedly being parked outside or driving by or near the homes of Alicia Armijo or Wendy Ellsworth, and I also have no information about or involvement with any persons allegedly following Ms. Armijo or Ms. Ellsworth while they walked outside or near their homes or elsewhere," Becker said in the court filing.

Richard Kent, one of Becker's lawyers, also requested that the court dismiss Ellsworth's lawsuit.

Phoenix New Times first reported the women's lawsuits and detailed their experiences with Becker in December. The suits accused Becker of performing plastic surgeries while drunk and botching the operations. Becker, in a court filing, said he “complied with the standard of care” and that he was not impaired during the surgeries.

Strange cars and demand letters

In the weeks after they filed the lawsuits — Ellsworth on Sept. 30 and Armijo on Oct. 2 — strange things started to happen, according to their affidavits.

Armijo called Ellsworth on Oct. 22 and said that Becker had allegedly driven by her house in Surprise. She recognized the surgeon as he drove slowly by, she said in the court filing, but the vehicle sped off before she was able to get the full license plate number. Armijo said her 14-year-old son also witnessed the event and “could attest to seeing a man fitting the description of Becker.”

Kent said Armijo was spreading a "false narrative" on social media and in the press, according to the court document filed on Wednesday.

"The fact that Ms. Armijo never made any reference to this alleged event that occurred on October 22, 2023, until almost four months later — when she is desperate to keep her lawsuit from being dismissed and while she is in the process of attempting to drum up additional media attention for her claims — is further evidence that her allegation is not credible and not a basis for the Court to take any action other than dismissing this lawsuit," Kent wrote.

Gregory, Armijo's attorney, filed a motion on Feb. 16 to dismiss her lawsuit.

About a week after Armijo claimed to see Becker in October, Ellsworth said an unfamiliar car parked outside of her home, according to court documents. As she went on a walk with her son in their neighborhood, she noticed a black sedan idling outside her home. When she walked to the end of her driveway, it abruptly sped off.

Ellsworth and Armijo did not notice anything suspicious for several weeks. Then, New Times reported on their lawsuits on Dec. 29. That was followed by coverage from at least two national media outlets.

Afterward, “many women who had undergone cosmetic surgery by Dr. Becker contacted me and/or Alicia about similar experiences they had had at the time of their respective surgeries. More specifically, these women informed us that Dr. Becker appeared to be in an altered state of mind at the time of their surgeries," Ellsworth said in her affidavit.

On Jan. 18, Ellsworth hosted a meeting with 10 of those women at her house. Gregory also attended. Between Jan. 22 and Feb. 8, nearly all of the women received letters from Raees Mohamed, an attorney for Becker, according to the affidavit. None of the women had filed a lawsuit against Becker at the time they received the letter, making them question why they received the letter.

Mohamed told New Times that the surgeon is considering a defamation case against some of the women. He added that he decided which women to send the letter to based on their statements about Becker on social media.

‘It was very intentional and threatening’

In her affidavit, Ellsworth alleged that in late January, she and her husband were walking around their neighborhood with their children when a white sedan approached them from the opposite direction.

“Instead of going wide to avoid us like normal drivers would do, the white sedan deliberately drove dangerously close to us, making us concerned they would deliberately strike one of the kids,” Ellsworth said. “They narrowly missed striking the kids a couple times. We turned around as they drove by to see who was in the vehicle but were unable to identify the occupants because of the darkness. Instead of leaving the scene, the vehicle drove to the east end of the street, turned around, and again approached us very slowly as if to strike us.”

Ellsworth said the car then intentionally drove close to the family again, despite having to drive on the other side of the street.

“It was very intentional and threatening,” Ellsworth said. “My husband and I were terrified by the incident and didn’t know what to think about it as we live in a very upscale neighborhood in Gilbert and never experienced anything like this before.”

On Feb. 8, Ellsworth noticed two cars idling in front of her house. Her son tried to take a picture of a license plate, but the flash went off. A woman with blonde hair in a messy ponytail jumped out of a sedan and got in the other vehicle, which quickly left. Ellsworth and her son saw two men in the sedan. Afraid, they went inside and called for Ellsworth’s husband. The vehicle stayed on the street for a short time, then sped away.

“This time, the incident felt deeply personal, unnerving and terrifying,” Ellsworth wrote in her affidavit. “My fear is that the driver(s) of the vehicle(s) intended to either harm us, intimidate us or worse, harm my family. I am uncertain who they were/are.”

She told Armijo about the incident, who said she had seen an identical vehicle parked on the route to the school of Armijo’s child, and that there had been two different drivers.

The same night Ellsworth saw the two cars, Gregory received a phone call from an unknown number. The caller demanded to know the location of his home and said they knew who he was, according to court documents.

“Because of the many threatening actions taken against Wendy Ellsworth, Tyler Ellsworth, women who are contemplating legal action against Dr. Becker, and against myself, the Plaintiffs and I will be speaking with Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office to explore our options in order to protect ourselves and our families,” Gregory wrote.

Becker, in his affidavit filed on Wednesday, said he was not involved in the incident in early February.

"That unknown person was not me; I do not own or drive a white sedan, was not near Ms. Ellsworth's home any time in early February 2024, and have never driven my vehicle close to Ms. Ellsworth or her family in a threatening manner or in any manner that posed potential injury or harm to them," Becker said.

Becker also said he has not driven by the homes of either woman and that he has not made any calls to Gregory.