New charges to be laid for anaesthetist Dr David Bell, accused of assault and intimidation

A prominent Southern Highlands doctor who allegedly assaulted, choked and intimidated a woman will have additional charges laid by next month, a court has heard.

A court has heard there will be additional charges laid against a prominent Southern Highlands anaesthetist currently accused of assaulting, intimidating and choking a woman.

Dr David Bell, 40, was represented by his lawyer in Moss Vale Local Court on Wednesday after he pleaded not guilty to assault occasioning actual bodily harm, intentionally choking a person without consent and intimidation with intent to cause fear.

Police allege the Mittagong resident assaulted a woman at around 11am on September 26 in Mittagong after he became upset about her smoking a cigarette.

Police claim Dr Bell pushed her in the shoulder before he put his hands around her throat and pinned her to the wall, leading the woman to believe she was being strangled.

Dr David Bell works at Bowral and District Hospital. Picture: Wesley Lonergan

Police allege Dr Bell then pushed the woman back onto a bed and struck her on the left side of her face before pushing down on the woman’s face and neck while she lay on the bed. According to police, the doctor continued to push the woman’s face into the bed, even after she rolled over onto her stomach in an attempt to avoid the suffocating pressure.

The court heard the alleged victim has an audio recording of the alleged assault, during which police allege Dr Bell can be heard threatening to hurt and financially ruin her.

Police allege Dr Bell can be heard telling the woman “I’m going to beat the s*** out of you” and “I wanna punch you in the face right now” in the recording.

The court documents reveal Dr Bell works at the Bowral and District Hospital as an anaesthetist. Dr Bell’s lawyer argued the hearing should be fast-tracked because of the potential impact on his employment.

Dr Bell’s lawyer argued his suspension would be “a loss to the community” at a time when doctors are in high demand.

When contacted about the ongoing court matters, a spokesperson for the South Western Sydney Local Health District said they were unable to comment on Dr Bell’s employment status.

“As the matter is before the court, it is not appropriate to comment further,” the spokesperson said.

The court heard Dr Bell works at a private practice and in the public health system, but has not been able to work due to the charges before the court.

“My client is on leave without pay and cannot work,” his lawyer told the court in an effort to stress the importance of an expedited hearing.

Magistrate Mark Douglass agreed to fast-track the hearing on December 3 during the last court appearance.

However, police prosecutor Peter Robinson told the court it was “clear there will be further charges” laid against the local doctor. He said, while there was a strong community interest in having Dr Bell return to work as soon as possible, police were still conducting an ongoing investigation into “historical matters”.

The court heard police will need to conduct numerous search warrants to obtain medical records, records from family services and records relating to Dr Bell’s disclosures – even including a search warrant on a hospital.

“We cannot complete those investigations before the time of hearing on 3 December,” Mr Robinson said.

Dr David Bell’s matter was heard at Moss Vale Local Court on October 20. Picture: Wesley Lonergan

Magistrate Mark Douglass said the new allegations involved the same alleged victim and similar circumstances to the charges already before the court. He opined it would be better for the complainant not to be subjected to separate court hearings for the similar charges.

“The desirable condition is to run it in one day and have it done,” he said.

“The interest of justice is in letting the police exhaust their investigations in a timely manner.”

However, the magistrate reaffirmed his commitment to a fast-tracked hearing.

“I’ll still give it the earliest possible date but we need to know more about what’s coming down the pipe,” he said.

Magistrate Douglass said he expected the new charges to be served and investigated by the next court date at Moss Vale Local Court on December 3.

Dr Bell is currently on bail and the alleged victim is protected by an apprehended violence order.