Cosmetologist convicted of killing Kim Kardashian lookalike model in Burlingame
Mar 24, 2026
(KRON) -- A jury convicted a cosmetologist of killing a Kim Kardashian look-alike model who died after receiving botched butt injections in Burlingame.
Jurors found 53-year-old Vivian Alexandra Gomez guilty of felony involuntary manslaughter, practicing medicine without a license, and inflicting gr
eat bodily injury, for the death of OnlyFans model Christina Ashten Gourkani, prosecutors said.
The unlicensed cosmetologist had remained out of custody leading up to, and during, her 15-day trial. Following the jury's guilty verdict Monday, San Mateo County Superior Court Judge Leland Davis immediately ordered Gomez to report to jail.
Christina Ashten Gourkani (Image via Twitter / Ashtens_Empire)
Gourkani was 34 years old and lived in San Jose at the time of her sudden death. The model, who emulated Kardashian for her OnlyFans page and half a million Instagram followers, relied on aesthetic procedures to look more like the famous reality television star, prosecutors said.
The real Kim Kardashian arrives for the 2023 Met Gala on May 1, 2023, in New York. (Photo by ANGELA WEISS /AFP via Getty Images)
On April 19, 2023, Gourkani met with Gomez inside a hotel room at San Francisco Airport Marriott Waterfront. According to prosecutors, the model had hired the cosmetologist to perform an "illegal gluteal silicone injection" to enlarge her buttocks, also known as body contouring.
Christina Ashten Gourkani posted this selfie photograph on Instagram on April 19, 2023. She died the following day. (Instagram / ashtens_empire)
After Gomez injected the silicone, the victim quickly became ill and her fiancé called 911. The model died the following day at Mills Peninsula Hospital in Burlingame from respiratory failure and a pulmonary embolism, prosecutors said.
While the victim was dying in the hospital, Gomez caught a flight and flew back home to Florida. She was arrest on April 20, 2023 at a Ft. Lauderdale airport, and she was later extradited back to the Bay Area to face charges.
Vivian Alexandra Gomez’s April 20, 2023 mugshot was released by the Broward County Sheriff’s Office. (BCSO)
On Monday, jurors deliberated for three hours before finding Gomez guilty. Involuntary manslaughter is defined as "the unlawful killing of a human being without malice," the Dept. of Justice wrote.
She will remain in a San Mateo County jail until her sentencing hearing, slated for May 5. The convicted cosmetologist is facing up to seven years in state prison, the San Mateo County District Attorney's Office said.
Using injectable silicone for body contouring is not approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
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