Singaporean trainee doctor in Melbourne arrested over alleged secret filming of hospital staff in toilets
The Straits Times reported that Ryan Cho, aged either 27 or 28 according to varying media accounts, was working at Melbourne's Austin Hospital when staff raised suspicions about a man loitering in the emergency department's toilets.
According to The Age, on June 25, a hospital employee flagged concerns, which came amid ongoing internal investigations into frequent toilet blockages and damage. Police now believe the damage was intentional — meant to steer victims into specific cubicles rigged with recording devices.
On July 3, a nurse discovered a mesh bag containing a mobile phone in a staff toilet. Hospital security later found the same bag again, prompting police intervention. Cho was arrested, and authorities seized two mobile phones, a laptop, and a hard drive, along with several mesh bags and removable hooks similar to those seen in the toilets.
ABC News reported that Cho had been spotted in hospital areas outside his official working hours on multiple occasions.
A deeper investigation into his devices revealed more than 10,000 images and videos — many allegedly filmed without consent between 2021 and 2025. The footage reportedly showed the genital areas of victims in showers or toilets, with a significant number of the visuals featuring female doctors, nurses, paramedics, and other hospital personnel.
Court documents cited by 1news in New Zealand stated that the content was categorised in folders, some labelled with the names of victims and hospitals, including the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and The Royal Melbourne Hospital. The files were reportedly sorted into 'Tier 1' and 'Tier 2' rankings.
There were also videos believed to have been taken outside healthcare facilities, including in homes.
Cho was initially arrested on July 10 and released on bail. He was re-arrested on July 25 and denied bail. He is currently remanded in custody and is scheduled to appear in court on August 29.
Senior Constable Narelle Baker told the court Cho 'devoted an enormous amount of time keeping his colleagues under surveillance, tampering with toilets to draw his victims into (cubicles) where devices were set up', adding that he appeared 'calculated and obsessed'.
The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency has since suspended Cho's medical registration.
Austin Health chief executive Jodie Geissler said in a statement: 'This has been an incredibly distressing situation for our staff, and their safety and well-being is our absolute priority. Right now, our focus is on caring for our staff. We have comprehensive support services in place and are doing everything we can to help them through this challenging time.'
According to The Straits Times, the police are now working to identify potential victims and are contacting staff from the hospitals where Cho was employed.
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Malay Mail
10 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Singaporean trainee doctor in Melbourne arrested over alleged secret filming of hospital staff in toilets
SINGAPORE, July 27 — A Singaporean trainee doctor working in Melbourne has been arrested and remanded after he was accused of secretly filming colleagues in hospital toilets over a period spanning several years. The Straits Times reported that Ryan Cho, aged either 27 or 28 according to varying media accounts, was working at Melbourne's Austin Hospital when staff raised suspicions about a man loitering in the emergency department's toilets. According to The Age, on June 25, a hospital employee flagged concerns, which came amid ongoing internal investigations into frequent toilet blockages and damage. Police now believe the damage was intentional — meant to steer victims into specific cubicles rigged with recording devices. On July 3, a nurse discovered a mesh bag containing a mobile phone in a staff toilet. Hospital security later found the same bag again, prompting police intervention. Cho was arrested, and authorities seized two mobile phones, a laptop, and a hard drive, along with several mesh bags and removable hooks similar to those seen in the toilets. ABC News reported that Cho had been spotted in hospital areas outside his official working hours on multiple occasions. A deeper investigation into his devices revealed more than 10,000 images and videos — many allegedly filmed without consent between 2021 and 2025. The footage reportedly showed the genital areas of victims in showers or toilets, with a significant number of the visuals featuring female doctors, nurses, paramedics, and other hospital personnel. Court documents cited by 1news in New Zealand stated that the content was categorised in folders, some labelled with the names of victims and hospitals, including the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and The Royal Melbourne Hospital. The files were reportedly sorted into 'Tier 1' and 'Tier 2' rankings. There were also videos believed to have been taken outside healthcare facilities, including in homes. Cho was initially arrested on July 10 and released on bail. He was re-arrested on July 25 and denied bail. He is currently remanded in custody and is scheduled to appear in court on August 29. Senior Constable Narelle Baker told the court Cho 'devoted an enormous amount of time keeping his colleagues under surveillance, tampering with toilets to draw his victims into (cubicles) where devices were set up', adding that he appeared 'calculated and obsessed'. The Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency has since suspended Cho's medical registration. Austin Health chief executive Jodie Geissler said in a statement: 'This has been an incredibly distressing situation for our staff, and their safety and well-being is our absolute priority. Right now, our focus is on caring for our staff. We have comprehensive support services in place and are doing everything we can to help them through this challenging time.' According to The Straits Times, the police are now working to identify potential victims and are contacting staff from the hospitals where Cho was employed.
The Star
12 hours ago
- The Star
Singaporean trainee doctor in Melbourne arrested for allegedly filming colleagues in toilets since 2021
Victims were allegedly recorded in the staff toilets of Austin Hospital's emergency department. - Photo: Screengrab from Google Street View SINGAPORE: A Singaporean trainee doctor in Melbourne has been arrested for allegedly filming his colleagues in hospital toilets since 2021, with more than 10,000 photos and videos found in devices seized by the police. The 27-year-old was identified as Ryan Cho, who was employed at Austin Hospital at the time, reported Australian newspaper ABC News. Other reports place his age at 28. His medical registration has been suspended by Australian authorities. Citing court documents, Melbourne newspaper The Age reported that on June 25, a staff member at the hospital raised concerns about a man loitering in the emergency department's staff toilets. There had already been ongoing investigations at the hospital at the time related to toilet blockages and damage. The police now allege that this was done to force potential victims into cubicles set up with recording devices, reported The Age. ABC News reported that on several occasions, Cho was seen by hospital staff at the emergency department outside his rostered hours. On July 3, a nurse found a mesh bag with a mobile phone in a staff toilet and reported it to hospital management. The same bag was found several days later by hospital security, leading to the police being called. Cho was arrested, with police seizing two mobile phones, a laptop and a hard drive. Several white mesh bags and removable hooks were seized, alleged by police to be similar to the one found earlier. A search of the hospital revealed similar hooks on other levels, including in patient toilets, that were not installed by management. 'Calculated and obsessed' According to New Zealand newspaper 1news, Cho was first arrested on July 10. He was initially charged with offences including stalking, and released on bail. The police analysed the devices – which Cho allegedly refused to give them the passwords to – and reportedly found more than 10,000 videos and images. The visuals showed the genital regions of victims using shower or toilet facilities, and were recorded from 2021 to 2025. Many of them were reportedly of female doctors, nurses, paramedics and other hospital staff. They were allegedly categorised into different folders referencing Austin Hospital, the Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre and The Royal Melbourne Hospital, sorted according to the names of the alleged victims. Court documents stated that the visuals were separated by 'ranking', with some in 'Tier 1' and others, 'Tier 2'. There were also other files found that were allegedly created outside healthcare settings, including homes. Cho was arrested again on July 25. He was refused bail, and will be remanded until his next court date on Aug 29. Senior Constable Narelle Baker told the court that Cho 'devoted an enormous amount of time keeping his colleagues under surveillance, tampering with toilets to draw his victims into (cubicles) where devices were set up', describing him as 'calculated and obsessed'. The police are contacting the other hospitals and potential victims during the time of Cho's employment. Austin Health chief executive Jodie Geissler said: 'This has been an incredibly distressing situation for our staff, and their safety and well-being is our absolute priority. 'Right now, our focus is on caring for our staff. We have comprehensive support services in place and are doing everything we can to help them through this challenging time.' The Straits Times has contacted the Singapore's Ministry of Foreign Affairs for more information. - The Straits Times/ANN
Malay Mail
15 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Home Ministry awaits AKPS chief's full report on officers nabbed by MACC over ‘flying passport' bribes
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