A Detroit-area doctor has been charged with using hidden cameras to secretly record women and children in the hospital where he worked over six years in a case police said showed his "depravity had no limits."
Dr. Oumair Aejaz, 40, recorded children as young as 2 and women recovering from operations in various hospital rooms, the Oakland County Sheriff's Office said in a news release. He spied on people in changing rooms, closets, bathrooms and bedrooms at hospitals and at a local swim club, it alleged.
He was charged with 10 counts, including one count of sexual abuse of a child, one count of using a computer to create and/or reproduce child sexual abuse material and four counts of capturing or recording children under 18 and two women while nude. His bond is set at $2 million.
"This is one of the most disturbing sexual predator cases I have seen in my very long career," Sheriff Michael Bouchard said at a news conference Thursday. "He violates literally anyone and everyone he can. From a 2-year-old boy to grown women, no one is immune from his disgusting predatory behavior."
The number of victims is unknown “because there are so many of them,” he said.
Bouchard added: "At the end of this case, it is my fervent hope that he is held fully accountable behind bars."
Oakland County Prosecutor Karen D. McDonald said at the news conference: “These are children and moms at a swim school. They were victimized by a person of trust in the community — a medical doctor."
Aejaz had privileges at Henry Ford Macomb Hospital in Clinton Township and Ascension Genesys Hospital in Grand Blanc Township. Both hospitals are cooperating with the investigation.
"We are shocked by these allegations and take them very seriously. This individual has never been an employee of Henry Ford Health but had privileges at several area hospitals, including Henry Ford Macomb Hospital," Henry Ford Macomb Hospital said in a statement.
"The safety of our patients and team members is our top priority and we have taken immediate action to prevent him from practicing at our health system," the statement added.
A spokesperson for Ascension said in an emailed statement that the company was aware of "the serious and concerning allegations against a physician who has medical privileges, but is not employed by Ascension Genesys."
"We take these allegations very seriously and have removed all of the physician’s access to our facilities. The health and safety of our patients and associates is of the utmost importance to us and we are fully cooperating with authorities in their investigation," the statement said.
Sheriff's detectives got a tip about Aejaz's behavior on Aug. 7 and raided his home the next day, seizing six computers, four cellphones and 15 external storage devices.
Just one device contained 13,000 videos dating back six years — detectives estimate it will take at least six months to fully examine all the seized devices.
NBC affiliate WDIV of Detroit reported that the tipoff came from Aejaz's wife.
Police said Aejaz is from India and was working in the U.S. on a visa after he came to the country in 2011. A specialist in internal medicine, he completed his residency at Detroit Sinai Grace Hospital before he moved to Dawson, Alabama. He returned to Oakland County in 2018.
Bouchard said the scope of the investigation would take detectives beyond Genesee and Macomb counties, where Aejaz worked, and could include other states and possibly other countries.
Anyone who believes he or she may have been a victim can contact the Oakland County Sheriff's Office at [email protected].
