Celebrity Plastic Surgeon Shot Dead Inside His Clinic, 18-Year-Old Man Arrested: Reports

1Dr. Alexander AslaniCredit: dr._aslani/InstagramNEED TO KNOWSpanish police arrested an 18-year-old Swedish man one day after plastic surgeon Dr. Alexander Aslani was fatally shot inside his Marbella clinic, according to multiple local media outlets

Detectives are investigating whether threats from a dissatisfied cosmetic procedure client were connected to the shooting

Aslani founded Cirumed Clinic in Marbella in 2018 and had built a large social media following

An 18-year-old has been arrested in connection with the fatal shooting of a celebrity plastic surgeon in Spain.

Police in Spain arrested the suspect — believed to be an 18-year-old Swedish man — on Thursday, Oct. 8, just one day after plastic surgeon Dr. Alexander Aslani, 57, was gunned down inside his clinic in Marbella, Spain, according to local outlets, El Mundo, The Olive Press and Sur.

Aslani was shot in the head at point-blank range several times by a masked at around 6 p.m. at his practice, called Cirumed Clinic Marbella. His wife, who worked alongside him at the clinic, was one of the people who alerted others to the crime and screamed for help, El Mundo reported.

Paramedics arrived on the scene and found the surgeon still breathing. They provided medical care, but he eventually succumbed to his injuries, according to the outlets. His body was later taken to the Institute of Legal Medicine in Málaga for an autopsy, per El Pais.

Sources told El Mundo that investigators suspect the gunman may have been working with a local to plan the crime and are working to identify that individual along with a motive behind the attack. The investigation is ongoing, according to El Mundo and El Pais.

A primary line of inquiry for homicide detectives revolves around a dispute involving a dissatisfied patient, police sources told El Mundo and Sur. Aslani’s work specialized in advanced body contouring and facial plastic surgery for over three decades and there have reportedly been some disgruntled patients over the years, the outlets reported.

In the hours leading up to the shooting, a client of Aslani’s clinic sent a series of messages voicing dissatisfaction with the results of a cosmetic procedure, demanding an immediate refund and making explicit threats, Sur reported.

Detectives were interrogating the suspect in order to determine whether the shooting had been a contract killing related to a disgruntled patient, according to Sur and El Pais.

Aslani founded Cirumed Clinic Marbella and he rose to become one of the city’s most popular surgeons with over 200,000 followers on Instagram, according to El Pais. He was also recognized as the best plastic surgeon in Spain in 2016, the outlet reported.

According to Cirumed’s website, the clinic’s most requested procedure is a Brazilian butt lift, also known as a BBL, of which Aslani had “performed more than 7.000 interventions over 16 years of single-specialty practice.”

U.K. media outlet LBC reported that Aslani had previously treated several U.K. reality stars, including The Only Way Is Essex star Chloe Sims and former Big Brother U.K. star Aisleyne Horgan-Wallace.

Horgan-Wallace shared a photo of the pair on her Instagram Stories with the caption, “@dr._aslani My friend,” with a broken heart and love heart emoji,

According to the Daily Mirror, Aslani had also treated Love Island U.K. star and All Stars contestant Hannah Elizabeth.

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.

The Malaga Medical Association condemned the incident in a statement, saying in a translated post that they “firmly and unequivocally reject any act of violence and express our deep concern regarding these extremely serious events that have resulted in the death of a physician while he was carrying out his professional duties.”

“The association extends its most sincere condolences and full support to the family, friends, colleagues, and loved ones of the deceased doctor,” they added.