Romford GP guilty of sexually assaulting four more women

Manish Shah has been convicted of 115 counts of sexual assault

A former family doctor exploited patients' fear of cancer to sexually assault them while undergoing unnecessary examinations, the Old Bailey has heard.

Manish Shah has been found guilty of 25 sexual assaults against four women at his GP clinic in Romford, east London.

He used high-profile cases of celebrities to persuade female patients to have intrusive examinations.

Shah, 53, is already serving three life sentences for 90 previous offences.

He is now convicted of 115 offences of sexual assault and assault by penetration against 28 women aged between 15 and 34.

Jurors in the current trial heard Shah had been a "well regarded" GP partner, whose appointments at the Mawney Road surgery were often fully booked.

But prosecution barrister Riel Karmy-Jones KC described how in reality the doctor "manipulated and abused" women.

Shah cited celebrity cases such as those of Jade Goody, who died from cervical cancer in 2009, and Angelina Jolie, who had a double mastectomy after genetic screening revealed she had a significantly elevated risk of developing breast cancer, the court heard.

Ms Karmy-Jones KC told the court Shah "took advantage of his position to persuade women to have invasive vaginal examinations, breast examinations, intimate examinations, when there was no medical need for them to be conducted".

Pictured after his arrest, Shah manipulated women and girls for his own sexual gratification

The GP had exploited their fears of cancer in order to convince them examinations were necessary, she added.

The court was told Shah put on a "façade" by presenting himself as a caring and considerate doctor, prepared to go "above and beyond" for his patients by carrying out extra examinations.

Giving evidence during the trial, some of the victims described how Shah would call them names such as "star", "special girl" and his "favourite."

One teenager who visited the practice between August 2010 and February 2012 said Shah told her she was a beautiful girl who should be a model, the trial heard.

No chaperone

Shah carried out a range of intimate examinations on her when there was no medical need for them and they should not have been conducted, the court was told.

Another teenage patient was told she had to have a vaginal examination after being talked to about the risks of cervical cancer and the importance of starting examinations early on.

Ms Karmy-Jones KC said it was an "obvious example" of Shah's ability to "manipulate and groom his younger patients".

Shah justified his examinations by lying in his medical notes, suggesting the patient had requested an examination and marking the appointments with the short-hand "req", standing for "requested" or "required", the trial heard.

Other GPs in his practice had repeatedly expressed concerns about Shah carrying out unjustified intrusive examinations, and a receptionist had noticed Shah had not been using a chaperone that should have been offered to patients during intimate examinations.

Shah, who was acquitted of 14 charges relating to four other patients, will be sentenced on 9 January.

Follow BBC London on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail]