London: An Indian-origin doctor, branded as "sex predator" for sexually assaulting women and teenage girls and secretly filming the acts, has pleaded guilty to 39 sexual offences at a UK court. Dr Davinderjit Bains, 45, was branded a "sex predator" by police officers investigating the case, who also found two James Bond-style spy wristwatch cameras on which he had filmed some of the attacks.
Bains pleaded guilty to 39 sexual offences against victims aged between 14 and 51 at Swindon Crown Court on Friday. The majority of the offences took place between July 2010 and May 2012 at Tinkers Lane Surgery in Royal Wootton Bassett near Swindon, south-west England, where he was based as a general practitioner (GP). Judge Douglas Field ordered pre-sentence and psychiatric reports to be compiled on the doctor, who was remanded in custody awaiting sentencing to a lengthy jail term.
Bains, who qualified as a doctor from Mangalore University in 1993 and became a GP in 2007, is currently suspended from practising by the General Medical Council (GMC). Detective Inspector Mark Garrett, who led the investigation for Wiltshire Police, said the doctor had "massively" breached patients' trust.
"Data recovered from this watch revealed that over a three-year period he had been secretly recording intimate examinations of his female patients and then downloading those images onto his home computer," he said. "We had the challenge of identifying and locating a large number of women and explaining to them that their examinations had been secretly recorded by Bains for the purpose of his sexual gratification. It was horrendous. They were unaware that they were victims and this dated back over a three-year period," he added.
The court was told that the watch Bains used to film the abuse had a built-in camera on the face, with simple on and off buttons to record, and can be bought on the internet for less than 60 pounds. His victim list comes close to 100 women when the judge takes into consideration the other offences - 10 of sexual assault by penetration, eight of sexual assault and 47 of voyeurism.
His not guilty pleas to three charges of sexual assault and a single count of administering a noxious drug with intent to commit a sexual offence were accepted and will lie on file. The police investigation began in June, 2012 when a 19-year-old woman told officers she thought Bains had filmed her as she showered and alleged that she had been sexually assaulted by him. When detectives arrested Bains at the Tinkers Lane Surgery, they discovered his hi-tech wristwatch with spy camera and found footage of "inappropriate or unnecessary" examinations by Bains on a Tieex 4GB Waterproof HD Spy Watch DVR, which has been likened to something out of a 007 film.
They later recovered 361 high-quality video clips from his watch and home computer. NHS Wiltshire wrote to patients of the surgery in 2012 and a helpline was set up to help his former patients. Stephen Rowlands, NHS Wiltshire's medical director, said he was "appalled" at Bains's crimes. "It is clear that he violated the trust and dignity of those who looked to him for professional care and support. Such cynical abuse of his position and the way he concealed the serious offences is reprehensible," he said.
At a previous hearing, Judge Field had banned the media from reporting the guilty pleas until Thursday, when the court heard that Bains will not face trial. He had admitted 23 charges relating to sexual assault and 11 of voyeurism at the last hearing. A statement from the Tinkers Lane surgery said: "This has been a shocking and distressing case for all concerned. The partners, GPs and staff of Tinkers Lane Surgery are deeply saddened by the actions of this former colleague and our sympathies remain entirely with the victims and our patients and their families."
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