You think fetishes are okay until you meet a man who is so obsessed with gummy smiles, he’ll pull your teeth off so you can suit his taste.
The fetish spectrum is broad. High-rolling men reportedly pay up to $300 to ‘worship’ and even lick women’s feet. Some people have simpler preferences, such as long hair or a perfect set of teeth. Dating 56-year-old Philip Lyle Hansen, however, might mean a trip to the dentist after the date to get quality dental implants. His fetish for ‘gummy ladies’ led him to extract the teeth of the women he’s dating.
Accused of 11 charges, including unlawful sexual connection and wounding with intent to injure, Hansen allegedly used pliers and screwdrivers to remove teeth from four women he has dated between 1988 and 2011.
In her opening address, prosecutor Sally Carter warned the jury about hearing evidence on Hansen’s fascination for or obsession with women who have no teeth. ‘Hansen liked his women without teeth’, Carter told the court.
From Fetish to Prison
Hansen pleaded not guilty, saying he had no intentions of hurting any of the women and that he is, in fact, just trying to ‘help’ them. One of Hansen’s victims, a woman he had a physical relationship with in the 1990s, says this is not true; she never consented to pull out her teeth, but that time, she was ‘too afraid’ to protest.
The court watched a 2012 video of the woman, narrating how Hansen held her against a car and extracted six of her bottom teeth, even using an oily rag to keep her gums from bleeding. Later on, the woman had her remaining teeth removed and replaced with dentures. When her wisdom teeth erupted, however, Hansen proceeded to remove them with a screwdriver. Authorities have arrested Hansen, but the case, as of late, is still ongoing.
If there is any takeaway from all this, it’s to choose the people you’re dating. You never know if an appointment with a seemingly charming person could cost you your beautiful smile. The only consolation for the ladies is that, at least, dental practices in Hertfordshire and elsewhere have gentle, efficient treatments for victims of trauma and terrible accidents.
