Doctor confesses to recording young patients, denies sexual abuse

Doctor Maarten B. confessed to secretly making 46 recordings of minor patients at GP's offices in Amstelveen and Schiedam between 2010 and 2017, while speaking in court on Tuesday. But he denies that he sexually abused the children, RTL Nieuws reports.

According to the Public Prosecutor, 18 of the 46 videos can be considered child pornography. Medical experts concluded that seven of the videos show child sex abuse. The abuse consisted mainly of touching the pubic areas and breasts of the girls, while they came to the doctor with symptoms that had nothing to do with those areas. B. denies abusing the girls, saying that his actions were part of thorough medical examination.

The 38-year-old man is also accused of sexually abusing his own daughter, starting when she was 2 years old, and three of her friends between the ages of 4 and 7. This abuse happened between 2012 and 2017. He partly confessed to this abuse and admitted that he had "apparently" made photos and videos of the girl. At the same time, he said that he can't remember much of it.

B. acknowledged that "things happened that can not be allowed and that I myself also find reprehensible". He stressed that he "does not have sexual feelings towards children". According to him, it started with photographing the girls under their skirts with his cellphone, but things got steadily worse. 

The doctor said that he did not distribute the videos and photos he made and that he had not been looking for child pornography. According to him, the 1,200 images of naked girls found on his computer were accidentally downloaded when he was downloading ordinary films. 

The authorities haven't examined all B.'s devices yet, because the man refuses to give them the access codes, according to the broadcaster.

B. was arrested in October last year after the parents of one girl pressed charges against him. The Public Prosecutor will demand a sentence against the doctor from Leiden on Wednesday.