Complaints against Shine under review

A CONSULTANT doctor is reviewing the complaints of indecent assault made by nearly 70 men against former surgeon Michael Shine and his opinion will form part of the Garda investigation file on Shine for the DPP.

Garda sources yesterday confirmed that the consultant, who works in general medicine in a hospital in the Republic, was “provided to the Garda investigation” by the medical council and is described as “an expert in general consultancy”.

The doctor began examining the medical files of the men as well as the statements of complaint they have made to the gardaí last month.

It is understood he will provide the gardaí with his medical opinion on the treatment they received.

All the complaints are from men who allege they were indecently assaulted by the 77-year-old consultant surgeon either in Our Lady of Lourdes hospital or in his private consulting rooms on Fair Street, Drogheda, between 1974 and the early 1990s.

Last November, Shine was struck off the medical register after the fitness to practise committee of the Medical Council found him guilty of professional misconduct because he had made sexual advances to three male patients.

In January the medical council outlined the grounds on which they found him guilty.

This also included making indecent suggestions and/or behaving indecently to each of these patients as well as assaulting or indecently assaulting the patients and undertaking inappropriate and/or improper medical examinations and/or treatments.

Shine worked for over 30 years in Drogheda. He was first investigated by gardaí in the 1990s and went on trial at Dundalk circuit criminal court in 2003 where he was acquitted by a jury after a trial that lasted nearly three weeks.

After he was struck off last year, gardaí in Drogheda took the unusual step of appealing for anyone with complaints to contact them and “talk to us either formally or informally”.

The garda source yesterday confirmed that “we have received 67 complaints,” and that Shine has “not yet” been interviewed about the new allegations.

After the consultant finishes his examination and once Shine is interviewed, gardaí will be able to complete the file and forward it to the Director of Public Prosecutions. That is unlikely to take place until towards the end of the year.