A Sydney-based doctor touched 16 female patients for his own sexual gratification under the guise of a “medically necessary” examination they had consented to, a jury has been told. General practitioner Sharif Fattah, 62, has pleaded not guilty in the NSW District Court to 30 charges of sexual and indecent assault allegedly committed over six months from September 2016. Fattah was arrested in early March 2017 after three women approached police. His other 13 alleged victims came forward within a month. “The accused used his position as a doctor to sexually assault or indecently assault the complainants under the guise that each assault was medically indicated, medically necessary, or as part of a legitimate medical examination,” prosecutor Tony McCarthy said as he opened the Crown’s case on Tuesday. “Therefore, the consent that was given was not informed consent to that act.” He said Fattah had worked as a GP for 20 years in New Zealand before coming to Australia and starting work at a health centre in Sydney in mid-2016. The female patients, aged between 19 and 40, are expected to testify they consented to particular examinations by Fattah at the practice. The trial continues before Judge Sharon Harris.
