A Melbourne doctor has been charged with the rape and sexual assault of a former patient inside a toilet cubicle at the Hotel Esplanade in St Kilda.
The doctor was charged on summons last month with two counts of rape and three counts of sexual assault following a 14-month investigation by the Bayside sexual offences and child abuse investigation team.
His barrister, Rishi Nathwani, claimed the public identification of his client would cause significant psychological harm to the doctor and his wife.
Mr Nathwani also said publication of his client’s name would damage his professional standing and earning capacity, in a submission to the court on May 26.
“The [suppression] order is necessary to protect the safety of any person as in this matter, the applicant, his wife and their family’s mental health, reputation and economic wellbeing will be seriously hindered,” Mr Nathwani submitted.
He said the doctor was “vehemently denying the allegations”.
A source familiar with the police investigation said it will be alleged that the doctor had been socialising at the St Kilda landmark, known as The Espy, when he met the woman who he had previously treated at a clinic in a bayside suburb.
The alleged rape occurred in a cubicle for disabled patrons on March 29 last year.
Detectives from the Bayside investigation team seized video footage from closed-circuit cameras at the hotel as part of their investigation.
A spokeswoman for the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency said it became aware of the allegations in April last year and was provided with further information in July last year.
