For the past few months Lisa Dickstein's been missing five teeth.
And now there's another hole, this time in her wallet. Lisa forked over $850 to her dentist to make an upper plate for her missing teeth.
"I was very angry and I didn't know what else to do," Dickstein said.
In October, she paid Jamaica Dental Center in full, and by December she was told her plate was done. Lisa says her dentist called her to come pick up her teeth, but when Lisa arrived at the office she was in for an unsettling surprise.
"It was all locked up," Dickstein said.
Turns out the dentist was evicted and scores of patients' records and half finished dentures were held hostage.
The landlord told 7 On Your Side that he had no choice but to lock the dentist out. All because he won an $88,000 judgment against the dentist last summer. The landlord told 7 On Your Side he gave the dentist months to pay. When he didn't, he started eviction proceedings and locked him out. According to the landlord, law prohibits him from touching the office's contents which puts scores of dental work and records in limbo.
It turns out Dickstein's not alone. Last month, 7 On Your Side told you about Eva Israel, an 88-year-old lady whose been on a liquid diet for weeks after her teeth were locked inside the Jamaica Dental Center.
Dentist Mitchell Charnas swooped in to replace the 88-year-old woman's dentures after seeing the story on Eyewitness News.
"He's our guardian angel and he really saved my mother's life," said Marcia, Eva's daughter.
Dickstein saw that story too and asked for 7 On Your Side to put the bite on the dentist one last time. Within hours of 7 On Your Side's call his office was open.
There 7 On Your Side found one more angel, Rosa Fuentes, the only person the landlord and dentist both trusted to open the office.
Dickstein was given her template including a huge bonus. The dentist surprised 7 On Your Side with a check for a full refund of $850.
"I just want to thank you guys for helping me, because otherwise I wouldn't know what to do," Dickstein said.
The dentist apologized and assured all his patients part of the settlement deal he is negotiating with the landlord. Being that, the new dentist who takes over his space will take care of his old patients.
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