A Teen Doctor Pretended To Be A Gynecologist - And Then Things Got Super Weird
Malachi Love-Robinson is by no means the first person to pretend to be a doctor, but he may be the youngest, dumbest, and boldest. Of all the people who have pretended to be doctors, Love-Robinson is a unique case, as well as a repeat offender. He first gained national attention when, in 2015, complaints arose of what appeared to be a teenager making rounds at a West Palm Beach hospital in Florida. Doctors were shocked to discover that the 17 year old was wearing a doctor's coat with the hospital's logo and wandering into exam rooms at will, offering advice to patients. He was booted out, but not charged, and the whole event was deemed an exceedingly strange incident.
Only a year later, "Dr. Love" opened his own illegal practice, built on a foundation of false credentials and a lot of bravado. The man who had pretended to be a gynecologist went on to rob his patients, draining one 86-year-old woman's bank account of nearly $40,000. Now facing time in prison, Love-Robinson has learned the same lesson as most people who have impersonated professionals: it can only last so long before you're found out. These Malachi Love-Robinson crime facts are shocking, and they explore how the baby-faced criminal got away with passing as a legitimate doctor.
He Was First Caught "Playing Doctor" In A Gynecology Exam Room When He Was Only 17
When Malachi Love-Robinson was 17, he was arrested after hospital staff caught him posing as a doctor at St. Mary's Medical Center in Palm Beach, Florida. He somehow stole a white lab coat embroidered with the hospital's insignia, and he wandered around the hospital, pretending to be a resident.
He stood in on various exams, offered advice to patients, and observed at least one gynecological procedure. It was then that real doctors became suspicious, and Love-Robinson was caught when he entered the exam room of a pregnant woman. He was arrested, but not charged, largely because he was a minor.
He Stole Nearly $35,000 From A Very Ill 86-Year-Old Woman
One of Love-Robinson's most unfortunate patients was 86-year-old Anita Morrison, who contacted the fake medical clinic in search of treatment for severe stomach pains. She found the New Birth New Life Medical Center & Urgent Care online, and was interested by the website's claims of alternative healing methods. When she called, she spoke to Love-Robinson on the phone.
He offered to pay her a home visit, and she happily agreed. Love-Robinson examined her body and declared she was suffering from arthritis. He sold her natural vitamins which, unsurprisingly, did nothing to help her stomach pains. The young, fake doctor returned four more times. During one visit, Love-Robinson called an ambulance for Morrison. He advised her not to bring her purse and keys to the hospital. She gave them to him to "lock up" her house but discovered later that her bank account had been drained.
It turns out that Malachi had been stealing checks from her house on his visits. He used her identity to try to make car payments. Overall, he stole a total of $34,500 from the ailing woman, who notably suffered due to his poor medical advice.
His "Doctor" Stint Came To An End When He Gave An Undercover Officer An Exam
The year after Love-Robinson made news for wandering around St. Mary's Medical Center, an anonymous tip to the police hinted at a situation that was potentially stranger. The tipster warned police that there was a West Palm Beach teenager impersonating a doctor and running a clinic on fake credentials without a medical license. Someone reported, "He is a very skilled con man! He is truly a danger to the general public!!!"
Authorities initiated an investigation, and when Love-Robinson gave an exam to an undercover official, he was arrested. Authorities discovered that the then 18 year old was not just working at the clinic as a program director like he claimed, but conducting exams, issuing medical advice, and even making home visits to patients.
Other Doctors Found Him Strange But Very Convincing
During his first stint as a "doctor," Love-Robinson was only 17 years old, but somehow easily convinced real doctors at St. Mary's Medical Center that he was one of their colleagues. Dr. Sebastian Kent, an OB/GYN at the hospital, said he was amazed and shocked when he learned of the stunt. "I've been in practice for 36 years, and this is the first time something like this has happened. It's very strange. Very, very strange."
Love-Robinson introduced himself to Kent as an anesthesiologist, and Kent was immediately suspicious of his extremely young appearance. However, he said, "This guy can schmooze his way around, he can tell any story you want to hear... That's what he tried to do with me—he tried to ingratiate himself with me so I would take him around, and after a while it started to not make sense to me. I thought something was wrong."
He Believed He Was Truly A Doctor Because He Had A PhD From An Online Church School
Love-Robinson's website boasted fake credentials, and before his medical center was closed by authorities, he had faux diplomas hanging on his wall. He claimed to have received a degree from the Southwest College of Natural Medicine, as well as a diploma from Arizona State University. When confronted by authorities during the investigation following his second arrest, Love-Robinson admitted that the degrees were indeed fraudulent. However, he maintained that he was still technically a doctor, since he received a PhD from ULife Church, an online Christian school. Unsurprisingly, the authorities did not agree.
Love-Robinson went on to deny the charges that he'd impersonated a medical doctor. "I'm not portraying an MD. I never said I've gone to school to be an MD," Love-Robinson told ABC News in an interview. However, the fact that he opened a clinic with the word "medical" in its name negates the claim that he never tried to convince anyone he was a medical doctor.
He Pleaded Guilty To Impersonating A Doctor And Was Sentenced To 3.5 Years In Prison
Although Love-Robinson initially denied the charges against him, in January of 2018, the now 20-year-old pleaded guilty to impersonating a doctor, along with several other felony charges, including fraud and grand theft.
Love-Robinson was sentenced to 3.5 years, although he received credit for having already served 483 days. Additionally, he will owe $80,000 when he is released from prison to compensate the funds he stole from patients. Considering he initially faced up to 90 years in prison, Love-Robinson managed to get off with a fairly easy sentence.