A care facility worker from northwest England was caught on camera sexually assaulting a female patient whenever she suffered a seizure.
Benjamin Poole, 21, of Somerville Street, Crewe, was sentenced to six years in prison at Chester Crown Court today after he pleaded guilty to five counts of sexual assault and two counts of wilfully neglecting an individual.
Victim Noticed Things Were Happening to Her During Seizures, Set Up Spy Cam
Poole was working at the specialist centre in Cheshire where the victim, in her 20s, was one of several other patients he was looking after.
According to Cheshire police, in the summer of 2020, the victim who frequently suffered from epileptic seizures, started to notice that things were happening to her whilst she was having the seizures. The woman suspected that Poole, one of her carers, was responsible as the incidents always took place when he was on duty.
According to the Epilepsy Society, any type of epileptic seizure could potentially affect one's memory, either during or after a seizure. The woman only had vague memories of what was happening so she purchased an alarm clock with a built-in spy camera in November. And within days of installing the camera, footage was captured of Poole sexually abusing her while she was having another epileptic episode.
According to the Crown Prosecution Service: "On 19 November 2020, the victim could feel an episode coming on and pressed the call button for a member of staff. Then she switched on the 'Save' function on the camera inside the alarm clock, so it would retain the footage. She did this because she knew Poole was on duty."
"When she came round from the seizures, she viewed the footage from the camera via her phone and was horrified to see Poole committing a number of sexual assaults on her over a period of 23 minutes while she was having the seizures." The victim immediately informed management and Poole was arrested by Cheshire Police.
Detective: Poole Believed the Patient Would Have No Recollection of the Abuse
"As a carer, Poole held a position of trust and he was there to provide the patients with the care and support they needed during their time of need," Detective Constable Amelia Stevens, said after the sentencing.
"Poole totally abused this position, and instead of caring for the patient he used it as an opportunity to fulfil his own sexual gratification," she added. "He wrongly believed that the victim would have no recollection of what he had done, but thankfully as a result of her courage and bravery, he is now facing the consequences of his actions."
In addition to his prison sentence, Poole has also handed and indefinite Sexual Harm Prevention Order and ordered to sign the sex offenders' register for life.
