A 70-year-old woman from Long Island is facing criminal charges after allegedly running an illicit dental practice out of her apartment, where she extracted five teeth from a patient who paid nearly $2,000, authorities said.
Gladys Serrano, 70, was charged this week for practicing dentistry without a license in her Hempstead, Long Island, apartment on Greenwich Street. The operation, prosecutors claim, put the health and safety of her patient at significant risk.
“This defendant’s alleged home operation endangered the well-being of at least one person in need of dental care,” Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly said in a statement. “Practicing dentistry without proper authorization poses an incredibly serious risk to public health and safety.”
According to the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office, a woman contacted Serrano after being referred to her for a single tooth extraction on July 26. The patient arrived at Serrano’s makeshift clinic, which was set up in a kitchen divided by a hanging curtain. Serrano allegedly told the victim that five teeth needed to be extracted due to decay. Serrano proceeded to extract the teeth, providing the patient with paper towels to absorb the blood and instructing her to rinse with salt water.
Over the next few months, the victim continued visiting Serrano for additional treatments. Serrano claimed the woman would need a dental bridge, but despite several visits between August and December, no bridge was ever successfully fitted. Serrano reportedly made several molds of the woman’s mouth, but none were usable. The patient paid Serrano a total of $1,950 for her services during the five-month period.
Authorities investigating the case discovered Serrano’s dental setup inside her apartment, including a patient chair positioned near a sink and drawers containing used dental instruments, impression molds, extraction tools, and medication vials. Among the items found were empty vials of medication, dental needles, and boxes labeled as single-use dental supplies.
Records from the New York State Department of Education revealed that Serrano is not licensed to practice dentistry. During her arraignment, Serrano pleaded not guilty to one charge of unauthorized practice of a profession, a class E felony. Judge Charles G. McQuair released her with electronic monitoring, ordered her to surrender her passport, and restricted her travel to within the state.
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