A California ambulance worker who allegedly sexually assaulted a teenage patient as she was being transported to a hospital has been arrested, authorities said.
On Friday, March 25, the accused 22-year-old first responder, Jason Dean Anderson was on duty in the back of an American Medical Response ambulance when he "sexually assaulted and solicited sexual acts from the teenage patient," according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.
"It is alleged that while on-duty in the back of an ambulance, Jason Anderson sexually assaulted and solicited sexual acts from the teenage patient during a medical transport," Sheriff’s Department officials said in a release.
Anderson, a resident of Wildomar, was booked into the Cois M. Byrd Detention Center for felony sexual battery and felony sexual penetration by force of a 14 to 17-year-old victim.
He was released from jail the next day on $75,000 bail. Sheriff’s officials believe there could be more victims who are yet to come forward.
American Medical Response officials said the employee was placed on administrative leave and an internal investigation was being conducted.
"We were informed of an alleged incident involving an AMR Riverside employee. Following an internal investigation of the allegations, the incident was reported to the Riverside Sheriff’s Department for further review," the spokesperson for the medical transportation company said, KTLA reported.
"The employee in question was placed on administrative leave during the course of our internal investigation and has not worked since the day the alleged incident took place. AMR will cooperate fully during the course of the Riverside Sheriff’s investigation."
Anderson is expected to appear in court on June 21.
"Any victim is encouraged to contact Investigator Wesley Martinelli from the Southwest Sheriff’s Station at (951) 696-3006," the sheriff's office said.
No further details were released at the point of this writing.
A similar incident was reported in June last year when the driver of a private ambulance was arrested for allegedly trying to sexually assault a COVID-19 patient at a restricted ward in the Kalaburagi district of Karnataka, India.
The accused has been identified as a 23-year-old Premsagar, also known as Pinto. Pinto, an ambulance driver at Gulbarga Institute of Medical Science (GIMS) was seized by authorities on June 9, for his violent crime.
His 25-year-old victim was reportedly admitted to the cardiology department of GIMS, undergoing extensive treatment for COVID-19. Pinto allegedly entered the ward around midnight and proceeded to force himself on the woman while she was asleep.
The victim was jostled awake by Pinto's assault as he tried to fiddle helplessly with her urinary catheter.
The disturbed woman quickly yelled for help startling the other patients in the ward awake. Security personnel shortly responded to the commotion as the suspect fled the premises of the hospital on foot.
The suspect was tracked down the morning after by local law enforcement.
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