Tragedy as Brit, 20, dies after botched weight-loss surgery in Turkey

After two years of Morgan’s family awaiting answers to her sudden death following weight-loss surgery, the inquest has been postponed after assistant coroner continues to try to contact the surgeon

A 20-year-old woman died from an infection in her abdomen just days after getting weight-loss surgery in Turkey, a court heard today.

Tragic Morgan Ribeiro, from Croydon, south London, travelled to Istanbul on January 5, 2024 for a £2,500 gastric sleeve operation. Three days after the surgery in Istanbul, Ms Ribeiro was given medical clearance to fly back to the UK by her operating doctor. But during her return flight to London Gatwick with her partner, Jamie Brewster, she became ‘very unwell’, it was said.

The aircraft was forced to make an emergency landing in Belgrade, Serbia, where she was admitted to an intensive care unit, and she died on January 13.

Reading out the findings of the post mortem from Serbia, which was reviewed by a UK pathologist, Assistant Coroner Laura Stephenson said Ms Ribeiro’s death was registered as being due to ‘diffuse inflammation of the retroperitoneum’ and because of the ‘rupture of the intestinal wall’.

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It is suspected her small intestine was punctured during the surgery in Turkey, which led to the infection and her death, but Ms Stephenson was unable to record a conclusion today because the surgeon who carried out the procedure has not responded to repeated requests for information, she said.

“I am not making findings of fact now as to whether that (Serbian finding) is correct but clearly the evidence I have now is that I need to know more about the surgery,” she said.

She named the surgeon as Dr Serkan Bayil, he has previously claimed that he did nothing wrong and that Ms Ribeiro died of an ‘embolism’ on the flight home – which was contradicted by the Serbian post mortem findings read out at South London Coroner’s Court this morning.

Ms Stephenson said her team had been trying to contact the elusive Dr Bayil since December to inform him he had ‘interested person’ status and to ask for information on the operation. She said letters and emails were addressed to him at the clinic where he appeared to be based, and which she named as the Apera Health Group.

The hearing was delayed this morning as Ms Stephenson’s team made last minute efforts to contact the doctor. Proceedings were then adjourned and Ms Stephenson set a new date of August 28 for the case to be heard, indicating she would record a conclusion on that day whether contact had been made or not with the doctor in Turkey.

The inquest was also adjourned in October last year because further information was being sought.

“It’s not clear from officers’ inquiries if that correspondence has reached him or if he’s still based there (at Apera Health Group),” she said “I don’t have the same powers because it’s in a foreign jurisdiction.

“I want to finish the inquest today and I know the family has been waiting a long time. However I need to consider fairness to all parties.”

“He (the surgeon) has the right to participate in the inquest. If he has received (correspondence) and does not wish to participate then there’s not much I can do. But I’m not satisfied it’s reached him.”

“I want as much information as I can possibly get about what happened before Morgan died,” she said, “If there’s a safety issue here on which action can be taken to prevent future deaths, then I want all the information possible.

“It’s hard to get that without the surgeon or clinic’s perspective.”

Devastated dad Richard Ribeiro, 46, sat alone in the court. Speaking through tears, when asked if he would prefer the court to continue or to take Ms Stephenson’s recommendation that all the facts be chased down, he said: “I have waited two years for this. I’ll wait as long as it takes. I want to know whether it was malpractice or not.”

Morgan’s mother, Erin Gibson previously spoke to the Mirror emphasising her need for justice: “I want justice. Not just for Morgan but for anybody else who has gone through this,” she said. “It’s wrong, it shouldn’t be happening. My daughter had her whole life ahead of her. It’s hard to adjust. Grief-stricken is an understatement.”

After years of suffering bullying due to her weight, Morgan decided to undertake weight loss surgery. A gastric band operation in the UK costs between £8,000 and £10,000 and Ms Ribeiro paid for the cheaper option abroad with her trust fund, it was previously said.

Now, Erin hopes to stop others going through similar routes and travelling to Turkey for surgery and hopes to tackle the issue of body image in social media.

Both of Ms Ribeiro’s parents, including mum Erin Gibson, have previously called for more regulations to be put in place to prevent future deaths from surgery abroad.

It has previously been reported that Ms Ribeiro’s operation took place at the Medevita private hospital in Istanbul. It is understood it provided a room for the treatment but that Dr Bayil was never based there permanently. Last year, The Mirror confronted surgeon Dr Serkan Bayil, who performed the operation, in Istanbul. He denied botching it, saying Morgan suffered an embolism and insisted he did nothing wrong.

However the Serbian doctor who performed the autopsy in Belgrade has said there was a “profound infection and septicaemia”. He said a segment of her small intestine had been removed and that it was damaged, and he stated it was a result of the operation in Turkey.