He Watched From the Netherlands: Former Anaesthesiologist Accused of Abusing Filipino Children, Youngest Just Three

A 66-year-old former anaesthesiologist who spent more than 25 years at a major Dutch hospital group is accused of watching, via livestream from his home in the Netherlands, the sexual abuse of Filipino children, the youngest said to be just three years old.

Prosecutors also allege he raped a girl under the age of 12 in the Philippines in 2023, setting out the claims for the first time at a pro forma hearing in Den Bosch on 8 September.

The suspect, identified only as Martin B. in keeping with Dutch reporting convention, worked for more than a quarter of a century at Noordwest Ziekenhuisgroep, a hospital group serving Alkmaar and Den Helder, before leaving the role.

The Allegations and the Arrest

Dutch news outlet NU.nl, which attended the hearing, reported that prosecutors allege he watched the abuse via webcam from his home in Bergen, in the Dutch province of Noord-Holland.

The Public Prosecution Service (OM), which is handling the case, told the court that at least four children in the Philippines were allegedly abused, with a possible fifth victim.

Prosecutors also allege he paid two teenage girls to pose and perform sexual acts, and that a three-year-old girl was abused in exchange for payment in August and September 2023.

To arrange the abuse, the prosecution says the suspect corresponded with local 'facilitators' in the Philippines, intermediaries who allegedly made children available for sexual abuse. Some of these facilitators have been arrested by Philippine authorities, the prosecutor told the court.

The suspect was arrested in May 2026 after an American organisation reported the case, according to reports from the hearing by the ANP news agency.

The Chats and the Land in the Philippines

Prosecutors also described messages in which he allegedly told contacts he had bought land in the Philippines and intended to move there after retirement, saying all the girls would be 'welcome' there. The chats also allegedly set out what he was 'going to do with the girls', and the prosecution described reading them as disconcerting.

Addressing the court, the prosecutor asked how it had got this far. 'He was a man who had everything,' the prosecutor said.

Hospital Says It Knew Nothing of Case

Noordwest Ziekenhuisgroep responded after being approached by NU.nl, according to NOS. In a statement, it said it was 'shocked' and 'dismayed' by the nature of the allegations and first heard of the case through the media.

The hospital said its anaesthesiologists were likewise unaware, and that it understood the suspect's absence and departure to be linked to 'private circumstances' separate from his work as a doctor. It said he resigned of his own accord and will not return.

The group said it had seen no signs that any abuse took place on its premises or that the hospital was otherwise connected to the allegations, and stressed that anaesthesiologists always work as part of a medical team when treating patients.

No verdict has been reached, and the allegations have not yet been tested in court. A pro forma hearing is a short procedural session in the Dutch system at which the court does not rule on guilt. The suspect is to be assessed by a psychologist, according to the prosecutor, and the next pro forma hearing is scheduled for 16 November.