A dentist who was convicted of sex-related counts involving five female patients at his Koreatown office, along with charges involving a young extern at a dental office in Panorama City, was sentenced Friday to 75 years to life in state prison.
Jurors deliberated just over three hours before finding Emad Fathy Moawad, now 55, guilty July 29 of six felony counts of sexual battery by restraint, five felony counts of sexual penetration by use of force and one misdemeanor count of sexual battery between 2013 and 2020 involving women ranging in age from 19 to 73.
Along with the potential life sentence, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge George G. Lomeli also ordered the Marina del Rey resident to register as a sex offender.
He had been barred from practicing dentistry pending the disposition of the case.
Deputy District Attorney Marlene Martinez told jurors in her closing argument during the trial that the case was about the women “who came in here and told you what they endured” and who had been treated “as if they were his things, his play-toys” in what she called a “reign of terror.”
The prosecutor noted that some of the women described feeling dizzy after being put under anesthesia.
Defense attorney Mark Carrillo countered that Moawad “did nothing wrong” and “has nothing to hide,” urging the jury to acquit his client of all 12 charges.
Moawad’s lawyer questioned the credibility of the alleged victims’ accounts and suggested that money was the motivation behind the allegations.
Carrillo also asked jurors why police and prosecutors waited two years to file the case against Moawad after most of the allegations had already surfaced, saying that the decision allowed his client to continue practicing dentistry during that time.
In his rebuttal argument, Deputy District Attorney Michael DeRose told the panel that the victims did not dictate how long the investigation took.
Moawad testified in his own defense, telling jurors that he had been a dentist for more than 25 years.
The first jury to hear the case against him had deadlocked last year.