ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Investigators arrested a woman on Tuesday who they said was operating an unlicensed dental clinic in Orange County.
In pictures it look like any dentist office, with chairs, molds of patients' teeth and certificates on the wall.
"We have an X-ray machine in there, with two different chairs in there, cleaning equipment, medications for nerve agent blockers," Lt. Douglas Goerke of the Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation said.
But Goerke said there was something missing from the Good Homes Road office.
"There is no licensed dentist in this facility," he said.
Raw: Unlicensed dental practice arrest
Slideshow: Images of alleged unlicensed dental office
The office, which appears to be a single-family home, was cleaned out Tuesday after the Department of Health received a tip about the business several months ago.
Officials said Carmen Dierks had been performing full dental procedures, including crowns, bridgework and fillings, for at least seven years.
Channel 9 learned that Dierks is a licensed dental hygienist, but was not licensed to do much of the work she is accused of performing.
Investigators said they are still trying to determine how much money was being made by the unlicensed facility. They said they do believe there were more than 100 patients, who they said were putting themselves at risk.
"It's not just the licensing, but the education. You could give someone a lethal infection that could kill them," Goerke said.
WFTV
