“He pretends to be a gynecologist and harasses patients with video consultations.” After the complaint of a 24-year-old, the Lecce prosecutor investigates: ‘Many cases’

by time news

“Report”. This is the appeal spread on social media by Noemi, 24, after on November 1st 2021 she told of being harassed on the phone by a man – probably a native of province of Lecce – who pretended a gynecologist. The call came from an unknown number: the man asked her private questions about intimacy, demonstrating that he had access to her data and sensitive information, then offered her to take a video call visit. The complaint, on Instagram and Facebook with the hashtag #nonseisola, has brought out numerous similar stories: the cases received by Noemi in these hours would be 25 in Puglia and more than 200 throughout Italy. There Prosecutor of Lecce opened an investigation and numerous volunteers offered victims legal and psychological support.

“He presented himself with the name of Francesco Licante or Lirante and contacted me for a gynecological inflammation, which I did not know I had – said the young woman on Instagram – He said he was from the Counseling center of the hospital in Tricase“In the province of Lecce”. Despite the curious timing – November 1 was in fact a day of celebration – the elusive doctor “knew his business in that field”. In addition, he was in possession of numerous private data, such as the date of birth, address and details of the young woman’s clinical situation. So Noemi decided to trust, even after he proposed her a consultation via video call. “He asked me if I had Zoom, but then we used Hangout – he explained to Il Corriere della sera instead – He never turned on the camera”. At the request to undress on video, the young woman became suspicious: “I refused, but I sent him a photo that only a few days earlier I had shared with my doctor, to whom I had contacted for a gynecological problem”.

A search online and at theTricase hospital revealed the fraudster’s false identity. The email and contacts provided were also not institutional. However, when the 24-year-old contacted him again, demanding an explanation, the man denied himself. He disappeared without giving any explanation. “I was naive enough to give him a chance to have fun with my body, but this guy could fool someone who is more naive than me: a minor, your sister, your mother, any other woman.” After the complaint to the carabinieri, on social networks Noemi was contacted by numerous other victims, first coming only from Puglia, then from all over Italy. Each told her similar dynamics and the same psychological violence. Some of them have even managed to reprimand the harasser, but many have not yet turned to the police: “Why they thought it was a joke, because they are afraid, because the very people who have them accused them of stupidity ”wrote the 24-year-old in a post. Sometimes, however, the response of the carabinieri was not adequate: “Whoever denounced, on the other hand, or tried, was treated with an air of disdain. Including me – then again – They told us that if we don’t receive death threats they can’t do anything ”.

An investigation is also currently underway into the disclosure of the victims’ personal data: the man may have hacked the databases of numerous hospitals and analysis laboratories. From the investigations of the Postal Police and the Public Prosecutor’s Office disturbing details are emerging: the man has been acting since at least August and has also lured minors.

“I was lured with a work email – said one of the young women to the television station South antenna – I had written an ad on the major platforms and three minutes later I received a call from an anonymous number. He told me to call his name Dr. Rinaldi and to call from the Casarano hospital ”(Lecce) – the danger was averted – At the end of the call he asked me if I wanted to book a gynecological examination. I got scared”. A 40-year-old, diagnosed with cancer, said instead of having been contacted just before midnight: “She told me that the hysteroscopy, which I had undergone in a Salento clinic recently, deserved further investigation. The world collapsed on me. He knew everything about me, about my family, about the health visits in recent months – then he continued – I told him that, in the light of his call, I wanted to interface first of all with the doctor who had operated on me. And that’s when he asked me, out of nowhere, how my sex life was going. I hung up ”. Then there are women called on their work number while they were alone in the office. Some who have received false diagnoses of polyps or inflammation. Still others who have undergone explicit sexual intercourse. The stories are many. Naomi’s invitation for all the victims is to make a common front, to support those who feel fear or ashamed and present the articles and testimonies, now disseminated in the national media, so as not to let the problem go unnoticed before the authorities: We all have one “only duty, of free choice: we denounce. We do it together”.

You may also like

Leave a Comment