Dentist gets prison for secretly filming employee undressing

A dentist in Spain was sentenced on January 26 to three years in prison and barred from practicing dentistry for three years for repeatedly secretly filming his receptionist change her clothes at his practice, according to news reports.

The judge found that the dentist, who only was identified as J.A.R.R., recorded her with "lewd intentions," ordering him to pay a fine of 7,500 euros (about $8,300) plus 3,000 euros (about $3,300) in compensation to the victim for the charges of crimes against privacy and aggravated by abuse of trust. The dentist also must refrain from practicing for three years.

His sentencing comes on the heels of the woman, who was not named to protect her identity, landing a victory in civil court in January 2019 in which the Supreme Court of Spain ordered the dentist to pay 62,500 euros (about $69,000) in damages for seriously and repeatedly breaking her basic rights as an employee.

In February 2016, the woman learned that she was being filmed after finding a USB drive on the floor of the office's reception area. She plugged in the drive to see who it belonged to and, instead, saw footage of herself getting changed into her uniform at the clinic's small storage space. At times, the recordings showed her wearing nothing but her underwear. The dentist made this space available at his clinic in Alcorcón in the Madrid region specifically for this purpose.

On one occasion, the receptionist said she was starting to take her clothes off with the room's door ajar, when the dentist grabbed the door handle. Then, she said the dentist remarked "jokingly" that he would like to stay and watch. The camera the dentist had planted in the room recorded this conversation.

The dentist attempted to argue that he set up the device because money was missing from a safe that was housed in that room. The judge dismissed this claim, noting that the device was positioned in a way that offered an "optimum close-up view" of the woman.

The woman's lawyer tried to get the dentist to admit recording her to avoid a trial, but the dentist refused. The 53-year-old clinician also tried to argue that the woman tampered with the recordings or filmed herself to try and get money from him.

The judge didn't buy his version, noting that, at least six times, the dentist activated the recording device before the receptionist arrived for work and then he returned to stop the filming after she left the room.