Neurologist pleads guilty to rape, sexual battery
An Oklahoma City neurologist has pleaded guilty to sexually assaulting four women. Kersi Bharucha, 62, admitted to inappropriately touching female patients during medical exams. He pleaded guilty Monday to one charge of second-degree rape and eight counts of sexual battery. He was sentenced to five years in prison and 10 years of supervised probation afterward. His plea agreement also mandates he register as a sex offender. Bharucha worked in the OU Physicians Neurology Clinic. A spokeswoman for the hospital said Bharucha hasn't seen patients at OU Physicians since March 2016. Bharucha was charged with rape after a woman reported he touched her genitals underneath her clothing while he was examining her for numbness in her feet and pain in her legs, according to a court affidavit. She told police he also took her left wrist and put her hand on his genitals. Three other women came forward with reports of illicit touching by Bharucha, according to court documents. They recounted incidents occurring between October 2008 and October 2015, with one woman reporting the doctor had sexually assaulted her four times. One of the female patients also sued Bharucha for negligence, assault and battery, and emotional distress relating to an incident of inappropriate touching. The civil case is still pending in Oklahoma County District Court. The woman claimed Bharucha grabbed her wrist and and placed her hand on his genitals during a 2015 medical visit at the OU Neurology Clinic, according to her lawsuit. He continued to talk normally about her neurological condition while he rubbed her hand up and down his genitals, she alleged. The woman confronted Bharucha during a follow-up visit in February 2016 and recorded their conversation, according to police statements and her lawsuit. She asked Bharucha about the incident, and he responded, “I don't know why I did that. I'm sorry,” according to a court affidavit.