An elderly woman with dementia was repeatedly sexually assaulted by a man who drove her to an elder care facility in Boston, prosecutors said Wednesday.
Each time Edwin Lam assaulted the 88-year-old Chelsea woman, a Ring surveillance camera recorded it, according to the Suffolk District Attorney's Office.
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Lam, a driver for Joyful Living Center Adult Day Health in Charlestown, was ordered held on $7,500 bail at an Aug. 19 hearing in Chelsea District Court, where he faced eight counts of indecent assault and battery, prosecutors said. He was also ordered to stay away from the woman's home, not work as a ride share driver and to surrender his passport.
It wasn't immediately clear if Lam, a 66-year-old from Medford, had an attorney who could speak to the charges. He's due back in court Oct. 17 for a probable cause hearing.
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Resources for victims of sexual assault are available through the National Sexual Violence Resources Center and the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 800-656-4673, and Massachusetts provides this list of statewide and resources for sexual assault survivors.
The surveillance video was discovered by a relative of the woman, who wasn't identified, who noticed her crying, prosecutors said. The footage, which was turned over to Chelsea police, allegedly shows Lam groping the woman's breasts and groin, as well as placing her hand on his crotch.
That footage will be important in prosecuting the case, District Attorney Kevin Hayden said in a statement.
"But even the best surveillance must be noticed and then brought to the attention of diligent investigators. Fortunately, both of those factors happened here. And it's particularly fortunate because this is a case where the victim was unable to communicate what was happening to her," Hayden said.
