A 35-year-old Florida woman was recently arrested for allegedly performing unlicensed dental procedures, including attaching veneers with store-bought super glue.
According to prosecutors, Emely Martinez, who posed as a “smile makeover expert” on social media, lured customers with promises of extremely cheap full-mouth veneer treatments. Her prices were so attractive compared to licensed dental clinics that many people didn’t bother to check her credentials. For reference, a single tooth veneer at a licensed clinic can cost between $900 and $1,500, but Martinez reportedly asked one client for $2,500 for a full-month veneer attachment procedure. Unfortunately, many of those mesmerized by Martinez’s low prices were left with severely damaged teeth, infections and pain.
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Operating out of her shop in Pinellas Park, Florida, Martinez promoted herself as a dental technician, despite not having any formal training, but her scam was discovered this summer, after two disgruntled clients filed complaints against her for causing serious damage to their teeth. After visiting actual dentists, they were shocked to learn that their veneers had been attached with Krazy Glue, a household super glue unfit for medical use. One of the victims required emergency surgery to fix the damage caused by the unlicensed technician. They claimed that Martinez not only refused to issue a refund but also denied any responsibility.
“She is not licensed to put in veneers. She has no schooling to do veneers,” Sergeant Windy Vater of the Pinellas Park Police Department said. “And in the state of Florida, obviously, you have to be licensed to do any kind of work like that.”
Emely Martinez was arrested on August 20, but investigators found that this was not her first brush with the law. She had been arrested in March of this year for performing unlicensed dental services in another Florida county. She has now been charged with fraud and practicing dentistry without an active license.
Florida is no stranger to medical procedure scammers. A while back, we wrote about 18-year-old Malachi Love-Robinson, from West Palm Beach, Florida, who was arrested for running a fake medical practice.
