An anesthesiologist from New York state has pleaded guilty to drugging and sexually assaulting his family’s nanny while she was asleep in his residence, as per authorities. Paul Giacopelli, aged 60, entered his guilty plea before Putnam County Judge Anthony Molé following a grand jury indictment in March. Steven Gaitman, Giacopelli’s attorney, mentioned that his client has taken responsibility for his actions and is now concentrating on caring for his family.
The victim, who was responsible for looking after Giacopelli’s children at his home in Southeast in Putnam County and occasionally worked overnight when Giacopelli was on call at the local hospital, recounted that on four instances in late 2023 she fell asleep, woke up to a cloth over her face, detected chemicals, and then lost consciousness. Consequently, she installed a hidden camera on Dec. 29, 2023, to capture the perpetrator. After feeling a cloth over her face and losing consciousness, she woke up and viewed the footage of the camera, which depicted Giacopelli assaulting her, according to prosecutors.
The victim shared the video footage with law enforcement, prompting Giacopelli’s questioning by the Putnam County Sheriff’s Office. Investigator Keith Simone informed the grand jury that Giacopelli admitted to using Sevoflurane, an anesthetic agent, to render the woman unconscious by covering her mouth and nose with a cloth. He admitted to sexually assaulting the woman while she was unconscious and disclosed having a “chloroform fetish.” He also revealed that the woman was an easy target due to being a “heavy sleeper” and copped to bringing drugs from the hospital to his home, where authorities discovered Fentanyl and other substances.
Following his apprehension, the state Board for Professional Medical Conduct banned Giacopelli from practicing medicine. His sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 20, with a projected sentence of four years in state prison.
