Inset: Cesar Augusto Perez Mejia (Harris County Jail). Background: Apartment where Mejia was running illegal dentist practice, cops say (Google Maps)
Texas authorities arrested a man who allegedly posed as a dentist and damaged a woman’s jaw after he used pliers to pull out a tooth.
Cesar Augusto Perez Mejia, 47, stands accused of practicing dentistry without a license and aggravated assault, according to court records. Houston police said he was performing dentistry services out of his apartment. The incident in question occurred on Sept. 30, 2024, cops say.
Local NBC affiliate KPRC spoke with the victim, who said Mejia put her under anesthesia to pull out one of her teeth. But he allegedly broke her tooth and damaged her jaw. She reportedly ended up in the hospital. Neighbors told the outlet he was charging people $250 and up for his work.
Cops filed charges against Mejia on Monday. As of Wednesday afternoon, he remained at the Harris County Jail on a $90,000 bond.
Mejia was also arrested in February after he allegedly attacked a woman with a screwdriver, KPRC reported. She said he confused her for the mother of a woman who smashed his car windows.
“I was sitting down, and he came out with a screwdriver and was assaulting me. We had to call the cops and when the cops came, he was still on a rampage,” the victim Alejandra Moncada, told the outlet.
Last year, the American Dental Association warned patients to steer clear of unlicensed dentists.
“Unsupervised dental treatment from unlicensed individuals has the potential to cause damaging complications for patients, and any dental procedure that may alter the physical structure of an individual’s teeth, gums or jaws, without the supervision of a dentist, has the potential to cause irreversible harm,” the ADA said.
Each state requires dentists to be licensed. Arrests of unlicensed dentists are cropping up around the country. Earlier this month, a woman in New York was arrested for running an illegal practice that targeted undocumented immigrants. In some cases, she allegedly caused nerve damage and partial facial paralysis.
Houston police also arrested a fake dentist last year who was advertising her services on TikTok. Cops alleged the woman replaced 16 of the victim’s teeth, but because they were not set correctly, the victim was in a lot of pain and one of the teeth fell out.
