Retired NYPD Lieutenant Sues Over Alleged Sexual Abuse by 98-Year-Old Doctor
Civil suit accuses NYPD Deputy Chief Surgeon Theobald Reich, 98, of repeated abuse during biweekly medical visits that began after a 2018 fall; case seeks unspecified damages.
A retired NYPD officer filed a civil suit in Manhattan Supreme Court on Friday alleging that 98-year-old Deputy Chief Surgeon Theobald Reich sexually abused him during biweekly medical visits that began after he fell on the job in 2018. The plaintiff, Wilding Aguasanta, 48, a former lieutenant who led the NYPD's Viper Unit, started seeing Reich every other week after the 2018 fall. Aguasanta retired in 2021 and now lives in Hempstead, Long Island, with his wife Teal and their two children. The suit names Reich and the city of New York and seeks unspecified damages.
According to the lawsuit, Reich would touch the plaintiff’s penis and attempt to make him erect during each appointment, telling him, 'I think you need to get an erection because you are a man.' The suit says Reich would ask whether Aguasanta knew what the medication did to men, and notes that Aguasanta, who had neck surgery and was depressed, was prescribed mental health medication that allegedly prevented him from consenting or objecting. The doctor allegedly bought Aguasanta a bottle of Cuban Rum and told him, 'I like brown skin.' Aguasanta says he emphatically said ‘No’ several times but feared he’d be fired, recalling that Reich told him, 'Your future is in my hands.'
Despite reporting concerns to colleagues or supervisors, Aguasanta says he felt unable to report the abuse for fear of losing his job and pension. He retired in 2021 and receives a city pension, according to the suit. The complaint seeks unspecified damages and names Reich and the city as defendants. 'The city cannot escape accountability for the culture of indifference that enabled this abuse,' said attorney John Scola, who represents Aguasanta.
The city did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the suit, and Reich hung up on a reporter seeking comment, according to the filing. The case was filed in Manhattan Supreme Court and adds to a broader national discourse about abuse by medical professionals within public institutions.
