Medford man charged with multiple sexual assaults on elderly woman with dementia

BOSTON — A Medford man was ordered held on $7,500 bail and other release conditions after being charged with multiple sexual assaults on an 88-year-old Chelsea woman with dementia, District Attorney Kevin Hayden said Wednesday.

Edwin Lam, 66, was charged in Chelsea District Court on Aug. 19 with eight counts of indecent assault and battery on a person over 60/disabled person. Judge Jane Prince ordered Lam to stay away from the victim’s home, surrender his passport, not engage in ride share employment, remain in Massachusetts and wear a GPS device with an exclusion zone around the victim’s home.

All of the assaults were captured on Ring camera surveillance video, Hayden said. Lam, who regularly drove the victim to an elder care facility, was charged last week.

Surveillance video from the victim’s home shows Lam assaulting the woman eight times between May 20 and July 11, Hayden said.

The videos show Lam, who drove for Joyful Living Center Adult Day Health in Charlestown, touching the victim’s breasts and groin area, Hayden said. The videos also show Lam grabbing the victim’s hand and placing it on his crotch.

A relative of the victim looked at the Ring footage after noticing the victim crying. The relative contacted Chelsea police, who then secured the video documenting the eight assaults and obtained a summons for Lam, Hayden said.

Hayden praised the victim’s relative and police and pointed out the importance that the video evidence will have in the case.

“We live in an era of widespread commercial and domestic video surveillance, which when used judiciously and appropriately can be a tremendous asset to investigators. 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.

Victims of any crime, including domestic or sexual violence, should call 911 in an emergency.

SafeLink, a statewide DV hotline, can be reached at 877-785-2020. SafeLink is answered by trained advocates 24/7 in English, Spanish and Portuguese, as well as TTY at 877-521-2601. It also has the capacity to provide multilingual translation in more than 140 languages. RAINN, the nation’s largest anti-sexual violence organization in partnership with more than 1,000 local sexual assault service providers across the country, can be reached at 800-656-4673.

Help is also available for members of the LGBTQ+ community experiencing domestic or intimate partner violence through The Network/La Red by calling 617-742-4911 or 800-832-1901.

Lam will return to court Oct. 17 for a probable cause hearing.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW

©2024 Cox Media Group