A LARNACA gynaecologist who has pleaded guilty to raping and sexually abusing his patients was of sound mind when he assaulted his patients, Larnaca Criminal Court yesterday heard.
He will be sentenced on March 28.
The 56-year-old gynaecologist has pleaded guilty to sexual abuse charges as well as raping six patients, two of whom were 15 and 17 years of age at the time.
The doctor was aware of his actions, a clinical psychologist told the court yesterday.
Prosecution presented a 13-page long document describing in detail witnesses’ testimonies and presenting pictures of naked patients which the doctor had taken.
The doctor had placed his genitalia on his naked patients, some of the pictures showed.
He also kept a file on each of his patients describing what he did to them.
During mitigation by the defence, the court heard that the doctor was remorseful over his actions and had tried to stop but could not.
The defence argued that the doctor’s actions had been fuelled by family problems and health problems, including an issue with sexual dysfunction, for which he had been taking medicine that changed his personality. “He knew what he was doing was wrong and wanted to stop but could not,” said the defence lawyer Efstathios Efstathiou. “He never meant to harm his patients”.
The gynaecologist was remanded in October last year after a 26-year-old told the police that she woke up from ‘surgery’ to find him naked on top of her.
She had not been operated on by the doctor, state pathologist Eleni Antoniou said.
The police found pictures of naked women on the doctor’s computers and camera.
Another patient approached the police after the news broke and by November the police had 43 written testimonies from patients.
The doctor has also admitted to using a pharmaceutical product that should be administered by an anaesthesiologist, indecent assault, and humiliating and inhuman treatment of others.
He has pleaded guilty to 44 charges in total relating to 35 patients – from Cyprus and abroad – he had seen between July 2010 and October last year.
The doctor has been in custody in central prisons in Nicosia.
The court has banned publication of evidence – including names – related to the case in order to protect the patients who have given testimonies.
