Fake Doctor Dalya Karezi Claims She Was Providing ‘Trustworthy’ Medical Guidance to Her 243,000 TikTok Fans

A woman who posed as a doctor, dispensing medical advice on TikTok and Instagram, claims she offered “reputable” help to those who needed it most.

In a letter of apology delivered to the magistrate hearing her case, Dalya Karezi explained how a white lie she told to a woman she was trying to impress turned into a fake online alter ego.

“As I write this letter, I am crying and I am still struggling to understand how I got into this position because it is very unusual and I never thought I would be in this position,” she wrote.

Karezi, whose photos showed her wearing a blouse and accessorizing with a stethoscope, provided advice on social media about sexual health, ovarian cancer, HIV and fertility issues, although she did not is absolutely not qualified to do so.

As “Dr Karezi”, she was extremely popular among Iraqi and Kurdish residents of western Sydney, where she worked as a community advocate.

Karezi even won awards for his work in a campaign called “Chicha, No Thanks” aimed at discouraging smoking from the Middle East’s water pipes.

The 30-year-old has amassed 243,000 followers on TikTok and 20,000 on Instagram under the name “Dr. Karezi”, giving hints about serious health issues between 2019 and 2021.

His 56 TikTok videos have been liked 1.5 million times.

Karezi falsely claimed to have an MBBS doctorate as well as a master’s degree in reproductive medicine and used the initials OBGYN while posing as an obstetrician-gynecologist.

She also falsely represented herself as a doctor when she successfully applied for research positions with NSW Health and the Cancer Institute, despite not needing that qualification for either job.

On Wednesday, Karezi pleaded guilty in Sydney’s Downing Center Local Court to impersonating a doctor and impersonating a medical specialist.

In a groveling letter of apology to a magistrate, Dalya Karezi explained how a white lie she told a woman she was trying to impress led her to live a fake life online.

The prosecution was brought by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency and the maximum penalty for each offense was $60,000 or three years in prison.

Karezi, who had no criminal record, expressed deep remorse for his deception in a 1,400-word letter of apology delivered to magistrate Theo Tsavdaridis.

“I have taken responsibility for my actions and know there is no excuse for my actions,” she wrote. “I feel ashamed and hate myself every day.

“I look at myself and see the humiliation I have inflicted on myself, my friends and my family.

“Having to tell my family and friends about my actions was extremely humiliating. I understand the serious consequences of my actions and I am truly sorry for what I did.

Karezi, who arrived in Australia as an Iraqi refugee aged eight in 2001, said she applied for a position with NSW Health after her friend Sheetal Chilim recommended her for the role.

She had told Ms Chilim she was studying medicine when they first met at a community event in 2017 and, over time, led her to believe she was a doctor.

Fake doctor Dalya Karezi is pictured leaving Downing Center Local Court in Sydney where she pleaded guilty to impersonating a doctor and posing as a medical specialist.

“I initially applied for a job at NSW Health because Sheetal recommended me,” Karezi wrote.

“I included that I was a doctor because I didn’t want Sheetal to find out I wasn’t.”

Karezi said her initial lie spiraled out of control when she began signing emails as “Dr” and using the titles RMO and VMO, meaning resident physician and visiting physician.

“The emails I sent from my work account using a doctor’s signature were to people Sheetal knew,” she wrote.

“I felt like I couldn’t say no or correct Sheetal, because I didn’t want to disappoint her. I know it was wrong, and I wish I had been stronger and corrected Sheetal from the start, and it made me feel like I was living two different lives.

Karezi, who holds a bachelor’s degree in health sciences, then began calling herself Dr.Dalya.s on Instagram and TikTok as she offered medical advice to her followers.

“In doing this, I was sharing publicly available information from NSW Health Direct,” she wrote.

Karezi even won awards for his work in a campaign called “Chicha, No Thanks” aimed at discouraging smoking from the Middle East’s water pipes.

“I got the equipment there because it was reputable and I was trying to make it more accessible to those who needed it.

“I regret my action and now understand that this was a serious offense which could have caused harm. My intentions were never to harm anyone.

Karezi, who earned a master’s degree in reproductive medicine in 2022, said she would never work in health care again and had deleted all of her social media accounts.

“I never wanted to do anything health-related again, even though I wasted so many years of my life studying and paying off student loans,” she wrote to the magistrate.

“I’m so terrified of social media now that I don’t even want to be on it at all. I will never have a social media account again.

Karezi, whose husband is a supermarket cashier, has worked as a claims consultant with an insurance company for 20 months, but expected to lose her job if convicted of her offence.

Mr Tsavdaridis said some of Karezi’s social media posts “crossed boundaries” and his crimes were “pretty serious matters”.

“Irregularities committed while presenting oneself (as a doctor) were widespread, prolific and pervasive,” he found.

“(She) gave advice on ovarian cancer, Covid… for toddlers, for uterine fibroids, contraception, paracetamol overdose (while) wearing scrubs and seen with a stethoscope around my neck.”

Mr. Tsavdaridis sentenced Karezi to two years in prison and fined $13,300.