Ex-Chief Neurologist Sexually Assaulted 7 NJ Patients: Prosecutor

A former chief neurologist has been accused of sexually assaulting seven female patients from New Jersey over a period of two years, according to authorities.

Ricardo Cruciani, 63, has also been charged with sexual misconduct throughout Pennsylvania and New York over the last 12 years. He worked at Capital Health’s Institute of Neurosciences in Hopewell, authorities announced.

On March 9, a Mercer County grand jury returned a 15-count indictment against Cruciani, including eight counts of second-degree sexual assault and seven counts of fourth-degree criminal sexual contact, Mercer County Prosecutor Angelo J. Onofri announced Thursday.

Some of his New Jersey victims came forth after they learned of the charges he faced in Pennsylvania, according to Onofri. They accuse him of “sexual assault and touching by use of physical force or coercion” between January 2014 and January 2016.

He pleaded guilty to the Pennsylvania charges in November. In that state, he was accused of groping women while heading a Drexel University department.

As part of that plea agreement, he was sentenced to probation and can never practice medicine again. He was also told he must register with Pennsylvania State Police and comply with all Megan's Law requirements.
He is currently charged with sexually assaulting multiple women in New York over a 10-year period.

Women who say they were sexually abused by Cruciani previously told the Associated Press they felt they had no alternative but to continue seeing the neurologist, who specializes in rare, complicated syndromes that produce debilitating pain. They saw Cruciani as their only hope of getting better.

According to the AP report, one patient said Cruciani tried to force her to touch his genitals and then masturbated in front of her. Another said she saw him regularly for three years without incident, but then, at an appointment in 2005, the neurologist grabbed her face and jammed his tongue down her throat.
Cruciani's license to practice medicine in New Jersey is currently inactive.

The attached image of Ricardo Cruciani was provided by the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office