GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. (KDVR) — A class action lawsuit filed Tuesday by Rathod Mohamedbhai LLC outlines years of alleged sexual assault that was recorded and photographed on the phone of a registered nurse at Saint Mary’s Hospital, SCL Health and Intermountain Healthcare.
Christopher Lambros, 61, allegedly drugged and sexually assaulted, and/or took lewd photos and videos of patients for at least 10 years while he was an RN, primarily in the intensive care unit in Grand Junction.
Lambros received his nursing license in Colorado on June 12, 2012. Around the same time, he was hired by Saint Mary’s, SCL Health and/or Intermountain Healthcare, documents show.
Lawsuit against hospital
The lawsuit alleges that the hospitals are liable for the alleged acts committed at their facilities over the last 10 years and should be held accountable for the “numerous corporate failures that permitted Lambros to abuse patients and invade their privacy.”
Here are some of the alleged failures of the hospital:
- The hospital knew or should have known that Lambros drugged, sexually assaulted, took lewd photos and/or videos for sexual gratification of hundreds, if not thousands of un-consenting patients at the hospital
- The hospital did or should have realized that Lambros possessed and administered an unusually high volume of medications to patients at the hospital, including sedating medications
- The hospital did or should have noticed patients under Lambros’ care were unconscious in circumstances where unconsciousness served no medical purpose
- The hospital did or should have noticed numerous patients of Lambros who had physical indication that they had been sexually touched under his care
- The hospital did or should have noticed trauma to patients, including but not limited to bleeding, bruising, and redness
- The hospital did or should have noticed Lambros drug and assault patients in plain view of the hospitals’ surveillance cameras
There are surveillance cameras in each room of the hospital, according to the lawsuit.
Allegations against Lambros
During the investigation, approximately four terabytes of data with 700,000 cellphone photos and 65,000 hours of cellphone video were uncovered from Lambros’ cell phone related to his alleged drugging and sexual assault of patients at the hospital.
The lawsuit alleges Lambros drugged, sexually touched, sexually penetrated, and/or took lewd photos and/or videos for the sexual gratification of hundreds, if not thousands, of un-consenting patients at the hospital.
According to the arrest documents, on June 24, 2022, Lambros whispered to the camera and said, “don’t ever get rid of these videos” and “you need to keep them forever . . . this is your Dexter collection.”
Statement from the hospital
FOX31 reached out to St. Mary’s Medical Center for a statement about the lawsuit and this is what they told us:
“Chris Lambros, a former nurse at St. Mary’s Medical Center, was terminated from employment immediately following his arrest by the Grand Junction Police Department under suspicion of sexual assault while delivering care at our hospital.
The safety of our patients is our highest priority, and we take this matter very seriously. We have zero tolerance for anyone who engages in the abuse or mistreatment of our patients. Immediately following the reported concern, the hospital placed Chris Lambros on administrative leave, removed his access to the hospital and patients, and reported the matter to local law enforcement. While the investigation is ongoing, at this time, the district attorney has charged the former nurse with abusing two patients.
“What this former nurse is accused of is reprehensible and goes against everything we believe and value at St. Mary’s Medical Center. Patients put their trust in us and should feel safe in our care. We are working closely with law enforcement to protect our patients from those who intend to cause harm. We are doing everything possible to ensure our patients continue to feel safe and respected while receiving care at St. Mary’s Medical Center,” said Bryan Johnson, President of St. Mary’s Medical Center.
St. Mary’s continues fully cooperating with the Grand Junction Police Department in its ongoing investigation. We cannot offer further details about this matter out of respect for patient privacy.
While the Grand Junction Police Department and hospital are contacting known victims directly, we understand that our former patients may have questions or concerns, and we want to offer them support. We have set up a call center to directly connect people with a patient representative so they can get information about their individual care. That phone number is 970-298-2273.
Questions about the criminal investigation should be directed to the Grand Junction Police Department or the 21st Judicial District Attorney’s Office.”
St. Mary’s Medical Center
Arrest documents
Arrest documents showed that on July 8, 2022, a report was made when an employee allegedly saw Lambros taking photos of a patient’s genitals.
The employee told officers that she had gone into the ICU room to check on a patient. When she entered the room, she noticed the lights were off and a curtain was drawn. The employee pulled back the curtain and found the patient unconscious with her gown pulled down. The employee told officers that she saw Lambros with his head on the patient’s stomach in a position as if he was taking a selfie picture.
According to the affidavit, once Lambros noticed the other employee had entered the room, he dropped the phone and re-covered the unconscious patient.
An officer with the Grand Junction Police Department went to Lambros’ home to ask about the incident.
Lambros told the officer he was giving the patient an injection in the stomach for blood clots, the arrest documents showed.
He also told the officer that he did not take any pictures and could not explain why the employee would say he had taken photos. Lambros did tell officers that he and the other employee had petty workplace issues, according to the affidavit.
The officer with the GJPD found probable cause and seized Lambros’ phone. A digital forensic analysis was done on the phone and investigators found photos and videos of Lambros posing with a number of unconscious victims and participating in lewd acts.
Victims identified during investigation
Police have identified at least three victims during the investigation. Several more victims are suspected.
FOX31 spoke with one of the victims, who wished to stay anonymous, on Tuesday.
“I just want the public to be aware of what’s going on there, Saint Mary’s needs to change their policy,” the victim shared.
Lambros was arrested on Oct. 25 on three charges of sexual assault.
If you were a patient at St. Mary’s Hospital and were treated by or accessible to Lambros from 2012 to 2022, you could be a victim. Please reach out to the GJPD at 970-549-5000.