GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – An ICU nurse in Colorado was charged in November with sexually assaulting unconscious patients in his care. Moreover, the nurse accused of the perverted misdeeds — identified as 61-year-old Christopher Lambros — was in possession of incriminating evidence after videotaping the abuse for what he disturbingly called his “Dexter Collection,” according to authorities, Law Officer reported last month.
During the investigation, approximately four terabytes of data with 700,000 cellphone photos and 65,000 hours of video were discovered from Lambros’ electronic devices related to the crimes for which he is charged, to wit: drugging and sexual assault of patients at St. Mary’s Medical Center in Grand Junction, Colorado. Lambros allegedly committed the offenses over the course of about 10 years while he worked as an RN, primarily in the Intensive Care Unit, KDVR reported.
Now, a class action lawsuit has been filed by Rathod Mohamedbhai LLC. The civil action filed Tuesday outlines years of alleged sexual assault that was recorded and photographed on Lambros’ cell phone while he worked as a registered nurse at Saint Mary’s Hospital, SCL Health and Intermountain Healthcare.
Lambros obtained his nursing license in Colorado on June 12, 2012. About the same time he was hired by Saint Mary’s Hospital.
The lawsuit claims that medical employers are liable for the alleged acts committed at their facilities over the last 10 years. Furthermore, the suit says they should be held accountable for the “numerous corporate failures that permitted Lambros to abuse patients and invade their privacy.”
According to KDVR, some of the allegations outlined in the lawsuit include the following:
- The hospital knew or should have known that Lambros drugged, sexually assaulted, took lewd photos and/or videos for sexual gratification of hundreds, if not thousands of un-consenting patients at the hospital
- The hospital did or should have realized that Lambros possessed and administered an unusually high volume of medications to patients at the hospital, including sedating medications
- The hospital did or should have noticed patients under Lambros’ care were unconscious in circumstances where unconsciousness served no medical purpose
- The hospital did or should have noticed numerous patients of Lambros who had physical indication that they had been sexually touched under his care
- The hospital did or should have noticed trauma to patients, including but not limited to bleeding, bruising, and redness
- The hospital did or should have noticed Lambros drug and assault patients in plain view of the hospitals’ surveillance cameras
The criminal investigation against Lambros was launched July 9 after a colleague caught him taking selfies with an unconscious patient’s genitalia, Law Officer reported.
The hospital employee who witnessed the crime told police that she entered a patient’s ICU room that night and noted the lights were off and the privacy curtain was drawn around the victim’s bed, according to a probable cause affidavit obtained by FOX 31 Colorado.
As the woman pulled back the curtain, she discovered the patient lying unconscious with her hospital gown pulled up to expose her breasts, and the bed cover pulled down showing her genitalia.
The co-worker saw Lambros with his head resting on the patient’s stomach with a phone in his hand in a position suggesting he was taking a selfie, according to the criminal complaint.
Lambros dropped his phone and hurriedly covered up the patient as the colleague entered the room, according to charging documents.
During an interview with police, Lambros claimed the patient was exposed since he was giving her an injection to prevent blood clots, which is administered in the stomach area, the New York Post reported.
Lambros told investigators that he had “petty workplace issues” with the co-worker who reported the incident, and denied taking any compromising photos of the patient.
However, Lambros’ phone was later seized and submitted for digital forensic analysis. The investigation subsequently led to 700,000 incriminating cellphone photos and 65,000 hours of video.
According to the police affidavit, his criminal conduct included “sucking on victims’ breasts and digitally penetrating victims.”
Moreover, one clip reportedly showed Lambros sexually assaulting a patient while whispering, “don’t ever get rid of these videos” and “you need to keep them forever … this is your Dexter collection,” court documents revealed.
Police believe the ICU nurse was apparently referring to the fictional serial killer Dexter Morgan from the Showtime series “Dexter” who collected blood slides of his victims as trophies.
St. Mary’s Medical Center released a statement to KDVR detailing that Lambros has been fired and that the hospital is “fully cooperating with the Grand Junction Police Department in its ongoing investigation.”
“Chris Lambros, a former nurse at St. Mary’s Medical Center, was terminated from employment immediately following his arrest by the Grand Junction Police Department under suspicion of sexual assault while delivering care at our hospital.
The safety of our patients is our highest priority, and we take this matter very seriously. We have zero tolerance for anyone who engages in the abuse or mistreatment of our patients. Immediately following the reported concern, the hospital placed Chris Lambros on administrative leave, removed his access to the hospital and patients, and reported the matter to local law enforcement. While the investigation is ongoing, at this time, the district attorney has charged the former nurse with abusing two patients.
“What this former nurse is accused of is reprehensible and goes against everything we believe and value at St. Mary’s Medical Center. Patients put their trust in us and should feel safe in our care. We are working closely with law enforcement to protect our patients from those who intend to cause harm. We are doing everything possible to ensure our patients continue to feel safe and respected while receiving care at St. Mary’s Medical Center,” said Bryan Johnson, President of St. Mary’s Medical Center.
St. Mary’s continues fully cooperating with the Grand Junction Police Department in its ongoing investigation. We cannot offer further details about this matter out of respect for patient privacy.
While the Grand Junction Police Department and hospital are contacting known victims directly, we understand that our former patients may have questions or concerns, and we want to offer them support. We have set up a call center to directly connect people with a patient representative so they can get information about their individual care. That phone number is 970-298-2273.
Questions about the criminal investigation should be directed to the Grand Junction Police Department or the 21st Judicial District Attorney’s Office.”
To date law enforcement investigators have identified at least three victims, although many more are suspected.
Lambros was arrested Oct. 25 and booked in jail with a $250,000 bond.
