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When a woman saw her doctor with abdominal pain shortly after giving birth she was told she needed an immediate pap smear.
Shafiul Milky took her to an examination room and raped her. “That’s nice,” he told her as he did so.
Shafiul Milky has been jailed for 14 years and six months over rape, indecent assault and sexual assault involving six women between 2012 and 2019.Credit: Wayne Taylor
Later in 2018, he did the same to another woman who had booked in for the cervical check.
It wasn’t the first time the Geelong doctor had sexually offended against a patient.
Six years earlier a patient made a formal complaint about Milky to his employers at Ocean Grove Peninsula Family Medical Practice and the national health regulator.
She saw Milky for a sprained ankle but he sexually assaulted her under the guise of demonstrating a breast examination.
It was clear what he was demonstrating was not correct, according to the woman, who had just undergone an examination with the practice nurse.
He then put his hands down her pants, claiming he needed to check her femoral pulse.
The practice managers appeared to accept Milky’s denials of the woman’s claims and reported to the Australian Health Practitioners Regulation Agency (AHPRA) that there was no need to investigate.
The regulator took it no further.
A jury found Milky guilty in March of 15 charges, including rape, indecent assault and sexual assault, involving six women between 2012 and 2019.
County Court Judge Felicity Hampel on Thursday questioned if his later victims could have been spared.
She jailed Milky for 14 years and six months.
Another victim, who saw the GP for back and sciatic pain, was given an unnecessary breast examination by Milky, who had himself removed her bra.
The woman described his touching as like patting a dog and said that there was no attempt to look for hardened lumps, Hampel said.
When she reminded Milky she was there for left-hand side back and sciatic pain he bent her right leg and cradled it against him while looking at her face and massaging her inner thigh and groin.
Milky’s final victim was targeted when he was working after-hour shifts for the National Home Doctor Service.
He sexually assaulted and tried to kiss a woman after she called the service for a consultation on cold and flu symptoms with muscle soreness.
She immediately reported Milky to police. An investigation began straight away, but it was nearly two years before he was charged.
He was stood down by AHPRA in 2020.
Hampel said Milky’s victims were left feeling powerless and unable to stop or control him. Some felt ashamed at not being able to speak up earlier, preventing his assaults of other women.
He took advantage of his authority as a doctor, offending under the pretence of medically appropriate intimate examinations to sexually abuse the women for his own sexual gratification, she said.
Milky claimed during his trial that the women had made up or imagined their assaults.
Bangladesh-born, Milky will serve at least 11 years behind bars, and is expected to be deported to New Zealand after serving his sentence.
Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732).
AAP
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