NY Office Manager Accused of Posing as Dentist for Root Canals
Valbona Yzeiraj is charged with assault and reckless endangerment.
— -- A New York woman faces a possible seven-year prison sentence for allegedly posing as a dentist named "Dr. Val" and performing dental procedures on patients without a license.
Valbona Yzeiraj of White Plains, New York, faces multiple charges including felony assault, attempted grand larceny, unauthorized practice and reckless endangerment for allegedly performing root canals and other procedures, according to Bronx County District Attorney Robert Johnson.
The alleged botched procedures resulted in continued pain for the patients, according to prosecutors. One of the patients ended up with an infection after a root canal and another still has pain two years after undergoing the procedure, according to prosecutors.
When reached by phone this afternoon, Yzeiraj’s attorney, Corey Sokoler, declined to comment on the case. Yzieraj has pleaded not guilty and was released on $20,000 bond or $10,000 bond cash after appearing in court Thursday, prosecutors said.
Yzeiraj, 45, is accused of performing the procedures while working as an office manager in the Bronx office of Dr. Jeffrey Schoengold, a dentist who also works in White Plains. The woman, who was arrested and arraigned Thursday, saw patients under the name "Dr. Val" during periods when Schoengold was out of the office in late 2012 and summer 2013, prosecutors said.
Yzeiraj told prosecutors she had dental training in her native Albania, but they say she had no training or license to practice in the United States. Among the patients affected was a pregnant woman and people without dental insurance, according to ABC affiliate WABC-TV in New York.
Prosecutors said when Schoengold learned what happened, he immediately fired Yzieraj, but she then allegedly attempted to take $20,000 money from the practice. Schoengold did not immediately respond to ABC News for comment.
Prosecutors said law enforcement became involved in the case after Schoengold fired Yzeiraj and that the licensed dentist is not under investigation by police.