A judicial investigation has been launched by the Public Prosecutor’s Office in Leuven, Belgium, into a gynecologist employed at two hospitals in the country, following a police report alleging sexual assault and a surge of over 150 telephone complaints. The physician was temporarily suspended from his positions at the University Hospital of Antwerp and a hospital in Tienen last Thursday, after the Flemish newspaper De Morgen published testimonies from several patients alleging inappropriate behavior.
In recent days, the Flemish Center for Reporting Transgressive Behavior has established up to three telephone hotlines to manage the exceptionally high volume of calls reporting the same gynecologist. “We have never experienced anything like this before… Even after the programs about abuse in the church, we haven’t had to do this. The phone just keeps ringing,” explained Liesbeth Wyseur of the Flemish Agency for Justice and Law Enforcement to Belgian media.
Wyseur added that, as of Friday night, more than 150 complaints regarding the doctor had already been received. The Public Prosecutor’s Office in Leuven affirmed this Saturday that “victims can still file a criminal complaint with the police or the courts. Each complaint will be registered and followed up in collaboration with specialized police units.”
The victims have described unwanted touching and inappropriate attitudes on the part of the doctor. One patient, who visited his practice 20 years ago, recounted to the media that the gynecologist instructed her to weigh herself completely nude, after which he approached her from behind and slapped her on the buttocks. “I didn’t feel comfortable with it, and I regret to this day not having said anything,” she stated.
Through his lawyer, the gynecologist has denied all accusations.
