Naveed Ahmed, 35, of Hickling Road, Ilford, was sentenced to nine months in prison in November after groping paramedic Charlotte Miller and exposing himself.
Charlotte waived her right to anonymity, which is automatically granted to victims of sexual assault, in the hope that it will encourage others to report similar crimes.
“My crewmate and I were encouraging the patient to get into the ambulance so we could assess him, but he grabbed my crotch and tried to grab me again,” she explained. He then drew his pants down.
“I couldn’t believe it; I was wondering if it was real. I was terrified and terrified. I think I was surprised because it was unexpected – I was there to help him.”
After the incident on Edgware Road last October, police officers arrived in less than a minute and arrested Ahmed.
The whole thing was sickening and disgusting, and it really made us feel quite vulnerable,” Charlotte added.
“But I would urge everyone to report these things because I was well supported by my management team and by the police.
“Only by reporting such behaviour and assisting police with prosecution will the message that there are serious consequences get through.”
There were 49 sexual assaults on London Ambulance Service (LAS) staff or volunteers in 2022.
There were 516 more physical assaults, including kicking, punching, headbutting, and weapon attacks, and 601 reports of verbal abuse or threats of violence.
The Service has spent more than £3 million outfitting its ambulances with video cameras to protect crews.
So far, video captured by ambulance cameras has been used in several successful prosecutions, with 92 video evidence submissions made since April 2022.
Dr. John Martin, Chief Paramedic for London Ambulance Service, stated:
Our ambulance crews and call takers should be able to work without fear of violence, sexual violence, or threats.
“They come to work every day to help others, so we will do everything in our power to keep them safe and treat them with the respect they deserve.”
LAS joined ambulance services across the country in launching the “Work Without Fear” campaign to promote a zero-violence culture and to help create a safer work environment for front-line staff and volunteers.
The Service has dedicated Violence Reduction Officers who encourage colleagues to report all incidents of abuse and assist them throughout the legal process.
The Metropolitan Police’s Detective Constable Jorge Sobral was part of the team that reopened the investigation into Ahmed.
“Our colleagues in the ambulance service devote their lives to helping people, and it is not acceptable for them to be treated in this manner,” he said.
“We will always investigate crimes like this and I would urge people to always report this sort of appalling behaviour to the police. This was a good outcome that, hopefully, will change people’s behaviour.”
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