Anesthesiologist with 'chloroform fetish' admits to drugging and sexually assaulting his children's nanny

An Upstate New York anesthesiologist has pleaded guilty to drugging and sexually abusing his family's nanny while she slept on a couch in his home, authorities said.

Paul Giacopelli, 60, pleaded guilty Wednesday after being indicted by a grand jury in March.

He was arrested in December, after the unnamed woman installed a surveillance camera behind a turtle tank's dehumidifier in the living room where she slept. She'd become suspicious following four occasions in late 2023 where she briefly woke to a rag on her face before smelling chemicals blacking out, investigators said.   

Giacopelli's attorney, Steven Gaitman, said his client 'assumed responsibility for his crimes, and now is focused on tending to his family.'

The plea deal serves as a swift fall from grace for a man who once worked as the chief anesthesiologist at Putnam County Hospital. Since stripped of his credentials, he also confessed to having a 'chloroform fetish,' cops confirmed.

Paul Giacopelli, 60, pleaded guilty Wednesday after being indicted by a grand jury in March. He is seen here with an unidentified family member

The former anesthesiologist confessed to drugging and sexually abusing his family's nanny while she slept on a couch in his home. He has had his medical license revoked

'I'm very proud of the work of the Sheriff's Department and Assistant District Attorney Melissa Lynch,' said Putnam District Attorney Robert Tendy in a press release unveiling the defendant's pleas.  

'[B]ut I'm mostly proud of the victim's courage in going through this process which led to the defendant's arrest and conviction.'

The pleas pertained to two violent felony offenses, Sexual Abuse in the First Degree and Assault in the Second Degree, and as Tendy indicated, came on the heels of a painstaking investigation.  

According to court papers, the victim told investigators how she was tasked with taking care of Giacopelli's children at his home in the Putnam County town of Southeast.

At times, the terms of employment called for her to work overnight, she said - often when Giacopelli was on call for the local hospital.

Upon becoming suspicious she was being drugged into a deeper sleep, she set up a hidden camera on December 29, 2023, an indictment for the defendant said. 

After again sensing a rag over her face before passing out, she awoke in the morning and viewed the contents of the camera in hopes of catching her attacker.  

Video clips garnered by the camera went on to show Giacopelli assaulting the victim, prosecutors said - recalling how officers carried out his arrest within hours.

The plea deal serves as a swift fall from grace for a man who once worked as the chief anesthesiologist at Putnam County Hospital (seen here)

Since stripped of his credentials, he also confessed to having a 'chloroform fetish,' cops said. After pleading guilty, he is expected to receive just four years in state prison

Beforehand, the woman brought the video clips to law enforcement officials.  

When Giacopelli was taken in for initial questioning an investigator from the Putnam County Sheriff's Office told the grand jury that the doctor confessed to filling a rag with Sevoflurane, an anesthetic, and covering the woman's mouth and nose.

Rendering her unconscious, Giacopelli also told investigators that the victim was an easy mark because she was a 'heavy sleeper,' Lead Investigator Keith Simone said.

Simone added how Giacopelli also admitted to bringing drugs home from the hospital, after dangerous substances like Fentanyl were found in the family's four-bedroom, $1million home, Simone testified.

The state Board for Professional Medical Conduct went on to bar Giacopelli from practicing medicine, a decision that will be upheld following his guilty pleas.

The verdict paves the way for the former medical professional's sentencing, which court documents indicate will be on Nov. 20.

After pleading guilty, he is expected to receive just four years in state prison, prosecutors said.