The Tel Aviv District Court sentenced Prof. Arie Levin, 69, to six years in prison Thursday after he pleaded guilty to raping the mother of one of his young patients, committing indecent acts against two female patients, and abuse of authority. Levin, a pediatric gastroenterologist who formerly headed the pediatric gastroenterology and nutrition unit at Wolfson Medical Center, will also pay 750,000 shekels in compensation to his victims.
The prosecution had requested a 13-year prison sentence. The plea agreement included an admission of guilt on an amended indictment but no agreed-upon sentence, leaving the court to determine the punishment.
According to the Tel Aviv District Prosecutor's Office, Levin initially denied the charges before reversing course and admitting guilt as part of the plea deal. Under the agreement's terms, he deposited the full compensation amount for the victims and committed to permanently surrendering his medical license.
In arguing for the 13-year sentence, prosecutors emphasized the extreme severity of Levin's actions. He exploited his position as a respected specialist physician and later as department head, prosecutors said, taking advantage of the trust placed in him by complainants who viewed him as their "savior", the only one capable of helping them, which enabled him to repeatedly victimize them.
Levin forced himself on women in the treatment room, prosecutors noted, a place where they were at their most exposed and vulnerable, harming them severely. The complete lack of compassion for the complainants' condition and his exploitation of them at such low points and moments of weakness demonstrates a defendant devoid of empathy who selected the most helpless and weakest individuals to exploit for his sexual needs, the prosecution argued.
The sense of helplessness and dependency inherent in the doctor-patient relationship, particularly between a physician and a patient fighting for their life, carries special gravity that must be reflected in severe and meaningful punishment, prosecutors told the court. The prosecution said it would study the sentence and consider its next steps.
