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Gynaecologist secretly filmed 8000 patients' genitals

Baltimore Police
Over 25 years as a doctor with the Johns Hopkins Health System in Baltimore, Dr. Nikita Levy used his position as a gynaecologist to make illicit recordings of his patients during their consultations.

By wearing a tiny camera, shaped like a pen, around his neck, Levy was able to surreptitiously record what he was seeing. Due to the nature of his specialty, most of his appointments involved his patients in a state of undress as well as close examination of the vaginal area. As a result, the recordings he made were a gross violation of his patients' privacy who were completely unaware, reports the LA Times.

Read: German doctor could face jail for secret photos

Levy was only caught when a female colleague noticed that the pen was in fact a camera and alerted the authorities. 

Police later found "an extraordinary amount of evidence" at Levy's home, says a police officer quoted by ABC. This included over 1 200 videos and 140 images on his home computer. At least 62 of the victims were young girls, however, since Levy made sure not to video patient's faces, it was not possible to match the videos to their subjects. Several other "spy cameras" were found in the doctor's practice room.

Facing a criminal investigation, Levy commited suicide two weeks later by wrapping his head in a plastic bag connected to a helium tank. He left a farewell letter to his wife.

Read: Demon doctors

Before the scandal came to light, Levy had been in trouble after he was reported for touching women inappropriately and being verbally abusive towards them. He also broke hospital protocol by sending chaperones out of the room when examining children.

All in all, over 8000 plaintiffs joined the class action lawsuit against the hospital, claiming they should have spotted what was going on years ago, reports Buzzfeed.

Read more:
The worst doctor visits
Doctors napping on the job 
Shocking experience at private hospital 

Sources: Buzzfeed/ABC/LATimes




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