CHANDLER, AZ — A dental assistant in Chandler has been arrested and indicted amid accusations of sexual molestation of several children, according to court documents.
Police say Deion Garcia, 27, is accused of molesting three child victims during x-ray exams that were done between 2022 and May 2024 at Kidiatric Dental & Orthodontics near Arizona Avenue and Chandler Heights Road.
He was arrested last week at a Kidiatric Dental and Orthodontics location near Lindsay and Warner roads in Gilbert. On May 21, he was indicted on 12 counts of molestation of a child and sexual exploitation of a minor.
Garcia is accused of taking photographs of the children with their clothes taken off, as well as forcing sexual activity.
Police say on May 8, 2024, a female child told her parents that Garcia inappropriately touched her and took photos of her during her exam that day.
During their investigation, Garcia was eventually connected to two more reports that were taken where children alleged they were touched inappropriately and photographed during exams. One of the reports was taken in 2022 by Chandler police, but not enough evidence was present at the time to arrest Garcia, according to court paperwork.
Officials say the 2022 case has been reopened after new evidence was found.
"With the info we have now, the evidence detectives have since discovered that case has been charged because of the info we've found," said Sgt. Ricky Gonzalez with the Chandler Police Department.
Police allegedly located several photos and additional evidence on his phone which confirmed the claims.
Garcia has been charged with 10 counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and five charges of molestation of a child.
"At this time, it is unknown how many victims were impacted by Deion," police paperwork states.
Ryan Edmonson, executive director of the Arizona State Board of Dental Examiners, said dental assistants are not required in Arizona to have state licenses or state certifications, so Garcia was not licensed with the state.
Edmonson said the dental board has not received past complaints about Garcia or the dental office. He said the dental board has no plans to open an investigation into the allegations. If the board did receive a complaint on this, they would refer it to the Arizona Attorney General’s Office or the county prosecutor because it involves criminal allegations.
Parents have the right to accompany their children to X-rays at dental offices.
A former employee of the dental office told ABC15 that it's not uncommon for the staff to ask parents to stay behind while child patients are being examined.
”They were asking parents to stay up front or to stay in the waiting area, just for the safety of the child, when they’re being sedated,” the former employee said.
Weeks after ABC15 reported on the story, Kidiatric Dental and Orthodontics provided the following statement regarding the investigation:
The doctors and staff of Kidiatric Dental are shocked and deeply saddened by the allegations. The care and safety of our patients has always been Kidiatrics’ highest priority. We have always taken the highest precautions regarding patient safety, so we were truly shocked to hear this may have happened.
Among our safety protocols and procedures are the following:
● Kidiatric always encourages parents to be present during dental exams and x-rays.
● We have 24/7 video surveillance throughout each location.
● By design, our x-ray spaces are open and viewable.
● We regularly review video to ensure compliance with safety and patient treatment rules.
● Kidiatric’s employee training is already extremely high quality – we have over 600 slides in our training program, with tests for each level of staff.
After reviewing the recent situation, we have added the following measures:
● We now require that a parent or adult caregiver must be with their child during x-rays.
● We are establishing an easy way for parents, patients, or staff to quickly and anonymously report concerns.
● We are increasing background checks, which are already standard before hiring, to be run annually on existing employees as well.
● We are reinforcing our child safety training.
As to the employee in question, he was immediately terminated. We remain committed to upholding the highest standards of integrity and transparency by continuing to work with – and learn from – the Chandler Police Department during this ongoing investigation.
Our thoughts are with those affected during this challenging time, and we thank our community for their continued support of Kidiatric Dental and Orthodontics. Kidiatric Dental and Orthodontics specializes in the best child dental and orthodontics care at its clinics in Chandler and Gilbert.
Since Kidiatric opened in 2011, the staff have treated over 10,000 new patients without a single complaint to the state board. Kidiatrics is currently rated one of the three best kids dentists in Gilbert Arizona.
Anyone who thinks their child may have been a victim in this ongoing case, please call the Chandler Sex Crimes Unit at 480-782-4494.
