Police in Milford, Massachusetts, announced Saturday that they had arrested a man for operating an illegal dental office in the back of a convenience store.
Milford police said in a statement that the owner of Alternativa Convenience Store had been renting a room in the back of the store to Juan Hermida Munoz. Despite not possessing a license to practice dentistry, Munoz, 64, provided numerous dental services, including examinations, extractions, anesthetics and cleanings, police said.
“Mr. Munoz is not board certified and holds no certifications to practice medicine within the United States. This practice puts the lives of patients in danger by unsanctioned and unsanitary conditions in receiving medical treatments,” police said. (RELATED: Doctor Accused Of Performing Ultrasounds On Men’s Genitals In His Bedroom Suspended By Medical Board)
“I was surprised because, obviously, that’s just crazy,” a Milford neighbor told WBZ NEWS. “I get the necessity. He’s lived in Milford for years and works directly across the street. Health care is so expensive nowadays. It’s so expensive, like a crown is $1,000. If they want to help the community they’re going to in some way. So I don’t blame them.”
The convenience store owner, Maria Magdelena Gauman-Castro, was also arrested and charged with conspiracy, FOX25 reported.
One of the convenience store employees told NBC10 that Munoz had worked for a longtime in Ecuador as a dentist and university instructor. The employee also said that Munoz was just trying to help out people in need, per the outlet.
The charge of unauthorized medical practice in Massachusetts carries a fine between $100 and $1,000, a prison sentence of between a month and a year, or both, Mass Live reported.