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🇦🇺 Australia /Crime & Justice

Trainee surgeon pleads guilty to secretly filming hundreds of victims

From ABC Australia · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Sources not specified Outcome reported
  • Trainee surgeon Ryan Cho pleaded guilty to 13 charges, including stalking and producing intimate images.
  • The charges stem from the secret filming of hundreds of victims using hidden cameras in Melbourne hospital facilities.
  • Cho will face a pre-sentence hearing in November, with victims having the opportunity to provide impact statements.

A trainee surgeon has pleaded guilty to installing hidden cameras and secretly filming hundreds of people in hospital bathrooms in Melbourne. Ryan Cho, 29, admitted to 13 charges, including stalking, producing an intimate image, and installing an optical surveillance device.

The gross violation of privacy occurred at the Austin Hospital, Royal Melbourne Hospital, and Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. Prosecutors stated that Cho's actions involved the production of thousands of intimate images and videos of several hundred victims. He also secretly filmed a former housemate. The court heard that Cho was initially facing over 900 charges, but prosecutors and defense lawyers agreed to combine many of them.

Cho, who has been on bail for about a year and living with his parents, faces potential jail time. His defense team has previously cited "complex psychiatric and psychological issues." He is currently required to undergo compulsory medical treatment and is banned from attending hospitals unless it is an emergency. A pre-sentence hearing is scheduled for November, where victims will have the chance to share how the crimes have affected their lives.

his offending "borders on the obsessive"

— Russ HammillA prosecutor describing the scale of the crimes last year.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by ABC Australia. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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