What to Know
- Dr. Grant Robicheaux and his girlfriend were initially charges in cases involving two women
- Prosecutors say they received dozens of calls from other potential victims, leading to the additional charges filed Wednesday
- A judge set bail at $1 million and ordered both defendants to surrender their passports
A 39-year-old woman says a Newport Beach surgeon facing criminal sex assault charges drugged her with GHB then attacked her while she went in and out of consciousness in 2016.
The woman, who spoke on condition of anonymity, says she met Grant Robicheuax and his girlfriend, Cerissa Riley, through mutual friends. They partied together on Halloween 2016, but things got out of hand.
She says she remembers dancing and drinking inside the couple's home, and then later she says her drink tasted salty and she felt ill.
Grant Robicheaux & Cerissa Riley said nothing as they entered court holding hands. The couple is accused of drugging/sexually assaulting two women in Newport Beach. Since the allegations became public, more alleged victims have come forward. They face new charges today. @NBCLA pic.twitter.com/WovfP5EUGO
— Jonathan Gonzalez (@JonathanNBCLA) October 17, 2018
"I had said something to Grant and Cerissa," said the woman, identified in court documents as Jane Doe #5. "They had admitted they had put GHB in the drinks and that they were on it themselves."
The woman says she went to their Newport Beach home with a mutual friend. But at some point he disappeared. She says she floated in and out of consciousness then woke up in the couple's bedroom.
"I thought maybe I was just feeling sick and they had put me to bed, but then when I woke up with Grant on top of me, I was definitely very confused."
She says both Robicheaux and Riley were in the bedroom.
"He was getting rough with me," she said. "I just kind of laid there and took it. Cerissa said, 'That's enough, Grant, that's enough, stop."
Prosecutors have charged the surgeon and his girlfriend with kidnapping, sexual assault, drug and gun possession. So far seven woman have come forward.
Jane Doe #5 is the first to file a lawsuit against the couple, accusing them of preventing her from leaving the premises and touching her without her consent.
Dan Gilleon, her attorney, says a criminal case can punish the accused but doesn't help the victim.
"For the victims, it's rarely about money," he said. "Most of the time, they'd just as soon never come forward."
Jane Doe # 5 says she decided to come forward to stop "these horrible people in their tracks."
Dr. Grant Robicheaux, 38, and Cerissa Laura Riley, 31, of Brea, both appeared in court in Newport Beach with their attorneys on Wednesday. They had been free on $100,000 bail since their Sept. 12 arrests in connection with alleged assaults of two women, but prosecutors filed new charges involving five additional alleged victims and asked that their bail be increased to $3 million.
A judge instead set bail at $1 million and ordered both defendants to surrender their passports. They did not respond when asked to comment as they entered court holding hands.
Prosecutors contend the pair would take advantage of their good looks to meet women in restaurants or bars, then drug them and lure them back to Robicheaux's apartment, where they were sexually assaulted.
