An ‘arrogant and crude’ heart surgeon molested his female colleagues by groping their breasts and exposing one’s chest, a court heard.
Amal Bose, 55, has been found guilty of sexually assaulting five staff members working below him at Blackpool Victoria Hospital in Lancashire.
One victim told the jury that Bose squeezed her breasts and said ‘I’m just looking for a pen’ when she handed him a leaving card to sign, a jury was told.
The administrative worker said she felt ‘sick’ as she believed other colleagues had seen what he did.
‘On a weekly basis he would smack my bum, he’d grab my boobs,’ she said.
She said Bose referred to her as ‘fresh meat’ and would often stand too close to her, making inappropriate comments.
She said she reported it to a colleague but the incident was ‘never spoken of again.’
Nine of the 14 counts involved this woman, who ‘struggled’ so much with his behaviour that she asked to be put on a four-day week and only returned to full-time working after Bose was suspended, the prosecutor said.
Amal Bose, 55, has been found guilty of sexually assaulting five staff members working below him at Blackpool Victoria Hospital in Lancashire. Pictured arriving at Preston Crown Court
The ‘arrogant and crude’ heart surgeon molested his female colleague’s by groping their breasts and exposing one’s chest, the court heard
His victims described ‘a culture of inappropriate behaviour that went unchallenged’ due to Bose’s seniority in the department at Blackpool Victoria Hospital (pictured)
His victims described ‘a culture of inappropriate behaviour that went unchallenged’ due to Bose’s seniority in the department.
‘If someone saw something they’d never admit to it and never challenge it,’ she said.
Prosecutor Huw Edwards told a sentencing hearing at Preston Crown Court that staff members described Bose’s behaviour as being ‘beyond workplace jokes’.
‘It was sexual targeting of females – and mainly younger females,’ he said.
One of Bose’s victims told the court she was groped by the surgeon as she scrubbed up ahead of surgery.
On another occasion, shortly after she joined the department, Bose rested his head on her shoulder, leaving her worried what other staff members would think about the relationship between them, she said.
‘She said there was a toxic environment in the department, and Amal Bose was the root cause,’ Mr Edwards said.
One victim was groped in an operating theatre as she helped the consultant prepare for an operation. After putting his gloves on, Bose ‘purposefully’ grabbed her breast, the court heard.
One victim said Bose’s behaviour was ‘a well-known fact’ and new employees were warned about him
Another victim said Bose touched her inappropriately ‘every time she saw him’ leaving her frightened and anxious
Another described how he had pulled her top down, exposing her chest and bra. He told her: ‘I thought that is where you put my cup of tea.’
‘From that point she changed her view of him from something harmless to something more,’ Mr Edwards said.
One victim said Bose’s behaviour was ‘a well-known fact’ and new employees were warned about him.
She said Bose touched her inappropriately ‘every time she saw him’ leaving her frightened and anxious.
She developed a ‘terrible’ sickness record and altered her working pattern to try to avoid him.
Medical staff felt unable to challenge the ‘toxic and sexualised’ culture he created due to his ‘position and authority as a senior consultant’, according to the prosecution.
Instead hospital workers would attempt to dismiss his behaviour by saying ‘That’s just Amal’, Preston Crown Court heard.
The trial heard that doctors at the hospital swapped ‘banter and sexualised joking’ on WhatsApp groups with names such as Cardiac Sluts and Work Slags.
The disgraced former surgeon was convicted of 12 counts of sexual assault relating to five female members of staff at the hospital between 2017 and 2022 in a trial at Preston Crown Court (pictured)
The court heard that Bose was thought of as a top class doctor with a leading reputation in his field and that this made it harder for people to make a complaint against him.
He was described by his peers – other consultant doctors – as ‘rude and arrogant’ and ‘creepy’.
The disgraced former surgeon was convicted of 12 counts of sexual assault relating to five female members of staff at the hospital between 2017 and 2022, at a trial in June. He was cleared of two other counts.
His defence barrister Tom Price KC said: ‘It is fair to say if they hadn’t before, the scales have fallen from his eyes and he appreciates the gravity of his conduct over that period of time.’
As a result of his offending, Bose has lost his career and now works as a parcel delivery driver. The hearing continues and he will be sentenced on Tuesday September 16.
