By Kiara Ibanez
MANILA — The National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) today said operatives of NBI-Lucena District Office (NBI-LUCDO) arrested an individual in Lucena City for illegal practice of dentistry.
The suspect was identified as BLANCA PERJES CAPISONDA- LOBUSTA, who was arrested in an entrapment operation that stemmed from a piece of information received by NBI-LUCDO regarding a certain TITA COSA who was engaged in the illegal practice of dentistry in the city.
Without a dental clinic, TITA COSA was doing home service by treating patients in their respective houses. Aside from tooth extraction, she was also making complete dentures and removable partial dentures for some of her patients.
Confirmatory acts were done which established the veracity of the aforesaid information.
With this, an entrapment operation was conducted on September 8, 2022, wherein TITA COSA, was caught en flagrante delicto receiving marked money from the poseur-patient and about to administer the anesthesia preparatory to the extraction of a tooth.
Seized from the subject were dental equipment such as a mouth mirror, dental aspirating syringe, topical anesthetic agent, licodine carpule, dental forceps, cow-horn dental forceps, surgical hand instruments, short needles, and local anesthetic agents.
The Professional Regulation Commission (PRC) certified that the suspect, who is a resident of Purok Atin-Atin II, Barangay Marketview, Lucena City, is not a holder of a valid certificate of registration and professional identification card in Dentistry.
Thus, her name is not included in the roster of registered dentists in the Philippines.
It was further revealed that the subject was previously arrested by elements of Criminal Investigation and Detection Group (CIDG) on March 16, 2021, for the same offense in which she was under probation.
The subject was presented for inquest proceedings before the Inquest Prosecutor of Lucena City Prosecutor’s Office for violation of RA 9484 otherwise known as The Philippine Dental Act of 2007. (KIARA LAUREN IBANEZ/ai/mtvn)
