Former UC Irvine student who impersonated a doctor pleads guilty

A former UC Irvine student who posed as a doctor was sentenced to a year in jail and ordered to perform 150 hours of community service after pleading guilty Wednesday to a misdemeanor charge.

Ariya Ouskouian, 23, of Irvine also will be placed on five years of informal probation, according to court records.

He pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of unauthorized practice of medicine. As part of a plea deal, eight other misdemeanor counts of misrepresenting himself as a doctor and a felony count of burglary were dismissed.

Ouskouian posed as a doctor and diagnosed a patient who had a growth on his neck in a consult room at UCI on May 3, 2018, according to the Orange County district attorney’s office.

Prosecutors said he also impersonated a doctor at Children’s Hospital of Orange County on at least seven occasions between April 23 and June 4 of last year.

In doing so, prosecutors said he misrepresented himself as a doctor to CHOC security, claimed to have lost his hospital badge, requested a temporary one and accessed restricted floors of the hospital.

Daily Pilot staff contributed to this report.

Support our coverage by becoming a digital subscriber.