18-year-old in Florida charged with impersonating a doctor

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Wednesday, February 17, 2016
18-year-old in Florida charged with impersonating a doctor
An 18-year-old man who police say liked to call himself "Dr. Love" has been released on bail after being charged with impersonating a doctor.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (KGO) -- An 18-year-old man who police say liked to call himself "Dr. Love" has been released on bail after being charged with impersonating a doctor.

Malachi Love-Robinson was released from the Palm Beach County jail Wednesday on $21,000 bond on charges of practicing medicine without a license, fraud and grand theft.

Palm Beach County sheriff's spokeswoman Teri Barbera says Love-Robinson was arrested Tuesday after he performed an exam on an undercover agent and gave medical advice.

Reporter: "They say you examined a patient today?"

Love-Robinson: "You will hear from my lawyer."

Hard to believe, but police say that "Dr. Malachi Love-Robinson" is no doctor at all and in fact he's a teenager, accused of trying to pass himself off as a physician for months.

Investigative reporters at our West Palm Beach affiliate WPBF-25 have been following the 18-year-old, and even sat him down for an interview. He admits that a year ago, he was the same teenager who police detained at a local hospital after a gynecologist found him in an exam room wearing a hospital lab coat and stethoscope around his neck.

"I didn't snatch up a baby, I didn't do any of that," he said.

Police say he liked to call himself "Dr. Love" and that he fooled his victims with an elaborate website.

In early January, he held a grand opening for this medical clinic. That's where police sent an undercover cop posing as a patient. When he started giving her a physical exam, she put him in handcuffs.

"This is not the first time I have been accused and I will pursue this," said Love-Robinson as he was led away in handcuffs.

Love-Robinson's grandfather, William Robinson, told the Sun Sentinel that his grandson never claimed to be a medical doctor, only a "holistic doctor." He said his grandson had never seen patients.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.