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Doctor sexually assaulted patient, Baker deputies say

MACCLENNY - A doctor charged with sexually assaulting a patient three times was recorded doing once by a hidden camera, the Baker County Sheriff's Office said Friday.

Adel H. Regaila, 36, was in custody at the Baker County jail on $1-million bail on three counts of sexual battery, the Florida Times-Union reported.

Regaila, an Egyptian citizen, has lived in the United States for six years and has a work visa, the Sheriff's Office said.

According to the Sheriff's Office, on Oct. 4 a woman reported Regaila rubbed his genitals on her body during an exam that day. Deputies gave the woman a camera for use during her next appointment, and she later reported that Regaila touched her genitals and rubbed her breasts during the exam, but the camera did not work because of a power failure, officials said.

Three days later, the camera recorded the physician rubbing his body against hers. He also exposed himself during the incident, the Sheriff's Office said.

Judge Joseph Williams said Regaila could not leave jail without surrendering his passport, and he is not allowed to leave Florida, practice medicine or make contact with the woman who reported the alleged abuse.

Regaila previously worked at St. Elizabeth Health Center in Youngstown, Ohio, and the Jersey City Medical Center in New Jersey, according to reports from the Florida Department of Health.

[Last modified October 22, 2005, 01:13:18]