Canada Journal – News of the World Articles and videos to bring you the biggest Canadian news stories from across the country every day
Dentist Jacobus Van Nierop went on trial in France on Tuesday where he is facing charges of aggravated assault for allegedly mangling the mouths of up to 120 patients.
Dentist Jacobus Van Nierop faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of 375,000 euros ($413,000).
Scores of people came forward with complaints ranging from multiple healthy teeth removed, pieces of tools left in teeth, abscesses, recurrent infections and misshapen mouths between 2009 and 2013.
According to one former patient who went to Jacobus van Nierop in 2012 to have braces fitted the dentist left her “gushing blood” for days.
He gave me seven or eight injections, and pulled out eight teeth in one go. I was gushing blood for three days.
Another patient said her visits to Jacobus van Nierop resulted in her losing teeth to abscesses after he performed “horrific operations” and then left her post-it notes saying to come back the next day.
Every time, he would give us what he called ‘a little prick’ and we were asleep, knocked out.
When it was over, we would find a Post-it note saying to come back for an appointment the next day or the day after.
In June of that year, police arrested Jacobus Van Nierop but left him free pending trial, and he fled the country the following December.
Jacobus Van Nierop tried to block his extradition, first to the Netherlands and then France, claiming to suffer from “psychological problems” including gender-identity issues and suicidal tendencies.
But he was eventually placed in a prison psychiatric unit in the Loiret department, south of Paris.
“He claimed to have killed his first wife, he played crazy, he said he was transsexual. He tried everything to avoid extradition,” Ms Martin said.
According to Dutch media, Jacobus Van Nierop had already come under investigation at home over his working practices before coming to France.
His trial in the central-eastern town of Nevers is expected to last until March 18, with a ruling expected later.
Agencies/Canadajournal
