Doctor accused of kissing patient had prior misconduct allegations, Florida cops say

When a patient called 911 to report her cardiologist had kissed her during her appointment, Florida investigators said they uncovered previous allegations of misconduct against him.

Dr. Jose Jacob with the Cardiovascular Institute of Central Florida is now charged with misdemeanor battery, the Ocala Police Department said in an April 1 news release. The 65-year-old didn’t face criminal charges in an incident a few months prior at the same office or at an office in North Carolina, police wrote in an arrest affidavit.

A 58-year-old patient reported that during her recent appointment, Jacob asked whether she had a boyfriend or husband, but she didn’t think anything of it in the moment, police said.

At the end of the exam, the woman said Jacob told her to give him a hug, which she did, but she added that he put his hands on her waist and pulled her toward him, officers wrote in the report.

She said she tried to push him away, but he wouldn’t let go and kissed her twice on the lips, according to police.

She left the room after, and a front desk associate said the woman appeared normal as she collected her paperwork and left, the report says. But the patient called 911 from the parking lot, and when officers arrived, they reported she seemed to have been crying and was shaken up.

Jacob denied asking any inappropriate questions during the appointment, saying he only asked his patient if she was single to determine whether anyone would be able to care for her. He said he shook her hand only, officers wrote in the report.

Investigators said “there is no surveillance footage capturing the incident, and no independent witnesses.” During his first interview with officers, Jacob also said he had no previous allegations against him, according to police.

But when investigators spoke with other staff members, they said a few months ago, a patient had walked out of her exam with Jacob to report an incident of misconduct, and the report was passed along to the CEO, police said.

The CEO told officers a patient accused Jacob of “intentionally falling out of his chair, face forward into her private area,” but the incident was handled internally, police said.

At the time, Jacob said it was an accident, according to police, and he continued working after receiving “minor punishments.”

As investigators began looking into Jacob’s history, they found a report filed in Edenton, North Carolina, in 2017.

A patient of Jacob’s told police he had made inappropriate comments about her body during an appointment, then began hugging and kissing her, officers said. While looking at the patient’s knee, Jacob was accused of pulling her dress up to expose her body until she stopped him.

“This incident caused the patient to lose sleep, as she advised she experienced numerous nightmares after the incident occurred,” police wrote in the report.

The case was processed as a civil issue, and Jacob wasn’t arrested, investigators said.

Medical license records in Florida and North Carolina show Jacob never had any formal disciplinary complaints filed against him.

Jacob was placed on administrative leave at the Cardiovascular Institute of Florida and then arrested by the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, according to police.

Ocala is about an 80-mile drive northwest from Orlando.