Man Sentenced in Dentistry Fraud Case

A San Fernando Valley man pleaded no contest Thursday to practicing dentistry without a license and was sentenced to 40 days in jail or 20 days working on a road crew, the city attorney said.

Jose Pablo Giron, 47, of Panorama City was also ordered to pay $1,000 to the California Department of Consumer Affairs for costs associated with its investigation and was placed on two years’ probation, officials said.

The case was referred to the city attorney by the state Board of Dental Examiners, which set up a “sting” operation after receiving several complaints that Giron was practicing dentistry without a license, said Ted Goldstein, a spokesman for the city attorney.

Giron was arrested April 16 at an office on Alvarado Boulevard near MacArthur Park in Los Angeles.

Goldstein said a dental board investigator posed as a potential patient who was complaining of pain in one of his molars.

“The investigator actually went to [Giron’s] office and sat in the chair,” Goldstein said. “When Mr. Giron put his fingers into his mouth, he announced himself as an investigator with the dental board and arrested Mr. Giron.”

In sentencing Giron, Los Angeles Municipal Judge Harold Crower gave him a choice between jail time and working on a Caltrans crew. Giron has not yet decided which punishment to accept, authorities said.

“This is not that unusual,” Goldstein said. “I would say this is the sixth or seventh case in the last few years with people practicing medicine or dentistry without a license.”