For many years, Dr. Brian Acacio had a lot of history among couples in California who were trying to start a family.
Acacio boasted some of the highest IVF success rates in Southern California. His reviews were stellar. Some doctors recommend him. And testimonials from former patients tell stories of dreams coming true after years of trying for a baby.
What his patients don’t know, by law, is that Acacio’s medical license was suspended by the California Medical Board in December following allegations of cocaine use and a board-ordered psychiatric evaluation that revealed a mental condition that impaired his ability to treat.
26 couples from across California filed a civil lawsuit in Orange County Superior Court on Tuesday alleging that Acacio failed to notify of the suspension of his license, continued to practice medicine and transported embryos without permission from his Laguna Niguel home to his office in Bakersfield.
Many patients who spent thousands of dollars on fertility treatments only discovered that their embryos had been removed when they tried to schedule a transfer, a medical procedure that is the last step of the IVF process. Others learned about the transfer through social media or other patients, said lawyer Benjamin Ikuta, who represents the couple.
“Our first and most important goal is the legal, speedy but safe transfer of these embryos back to where they belong,” said Ikuta. “He stole these people’s embryos. He took their families, and we want answers.”
Acacio could not be reached for comment. A message left at his office in Bakersfield was not returned.
Monique Santos, a patient of Dr. Brian Acacio, and his husband, Allen, spoke to the media on Tuesday.
(Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Monique Santos and her husband, Allen, tried for many years without success to start a family before they sought the help of Acacio.
Last August, Santos retrieved eggs that resulted in three live embryos. In early November, Acacio transferred one of the fertilized embryos. The couple had hoped to welcome a son, but the procedure did not result in pregnancy, he said.
The couple is disappointed. But they vowed to try again and they wanted to do it quickly. Their transfer in December was postponed, and the couple was given changing explanations for the delay, they said. Finally, they were told that the doctor had a family emergency.
When the Santos eggs were found, Acacio was under investigation by the state board of health for months, records show.
“I was almost tortured because I didn’t know what was going on,” Santos said while crying at a press conference on Tuesday. “I just want a child, actually, it’s very difficult.”
In late 2024, the medical board received a complaint that Acacio was using cocaine on a daily basis. In February 2025, investigators visited Acacio’s office to interview him and asked for a urine sample, which he refused to give. He admitted to using cocaine “about three times with his ex-girlfriend,” according to medical board documents.
Months later, a psychiatrist examined Acacio at the behest of the medical board and found that he had a “psychological condition that interfered with his ability to use medication safely,” according to the document.
In early October, Acacio agreed to a temporary order restricting his license. The order required him to abstain from alcohol and unprescribed controlled substances, submit to random drug testing and work with a psychiatrist who specializes in addiction treatment.
Then on Dec. 30, the medical board banned Acacio from practicing medicine after he tested positive for marijuana, records show.
The lawsuit alleges that Acacio performed ultrasounds on at least one patient after his license was suspended.
At the same time, Acacio was forced to close his medical practice in Orange County and move his clinic to Bakersfield. Court records show that Acacio, along with two other doctors, failed to pay more than $243,000 in rent for the Laguna Niguel office for a year.
A representative of Acacio’s practice told the couple via email that the embryo storage tanks were moved from Laguna Niguel to his office in Bakersfield on Dec. 17, according to the lawsuit.
Lawyers allege that Acacio refused to return his patients’ embryos unless they signed a “sweepstakes” agreement that would protect his clinic from any liability for possible biological damage.
The couple named in the lawsuit said they are not sure if their embryos are viable. Cryopreserved embryos must remain at a constant temperature, and transporting them, even under ideal conditions, presents certain risks, according to the lawsuit.
“I’m sad,” said Berenice Cervantes, one of Acacio’s patients. “I was optimistic about this, I did everything I could, I looked at the best doctors in the area and Dr. Acacio’s name kept coming up so I thought, ‘You can’t go wrong with that.’
