"He seemed trustworthy": Hearing starts for cardiologist Stephen Matthews charged with date rape
For more than three hours Friday afternoon, a Denver police sex crimes detective recounted the stories four women told him about their encounters with Dr. Stephen Matthews, 35, a Denver cardiologist now charged with drugging 13 women and sexually assaulting some of them.
The recitation from DPD Detective Andrew Comeaux - sometimes extremely graphic - was part of Matthews preliminary hearing. When the hearing resumes September 12, a judge will decide if there is enough evidence to order Matthews to stand trial.
Matthews' attorney has previously said Matthews is presumed innocent of the charges.
Each case Comeaux outlined contained remarkable similarities- the women typically met Matthews through a dating app, they would meet him in person, have some alcohol then lose the memory of what happened in the ensuing hours. In some of the cases, the women allege Matthews sexually assaulted them when they were unable or unwilling to consent to having sex. Several of the women say they felt so poorly they vomited while at Matthews' home. The women, and prosecutors, theorize Matthews drugged their drinks. One woman said she went to Matthews' home because, "he seemed trustworthy."
Matthews, wearing a gray jail uniform and in handcuffs, appeared to listen attentively to the testimony.
Comeaux said in one case in 2019, a woman who met Matthews on a dating app had brunch with him and had two to three bloody marys. She told the detective that she began to feel poorly and her memory became fuzzy, unclear and fragmented.
According to Comeaux, the woman "had a flash of memory of her sitting on the (Matthews) kitchen floor, completely naked with her hands handcuffed behind her back." The woman told police she began to throw up. Comeaux said the woman told him she believes she was drugged then sexually assaulted.
Comeaux indicated that after CBS News Colorado broke the story of date rape allegations against Matthews earlier this year, "we were receiving numerous calls on the sex crimes hotline from women who had similar encounters with the defendant."
One of those women said she met Matthews via the Hinge dating app and then met him in person January 2020 at a restaurant near Matthews' apartment. According to the detective, the woman had one beer with Matthews then left to use the restroom. She returned and had another half of a beer and started feeling poorly. The woman believes she was drugged and the line of questioning suggested police and prosecutors believe Matthews put something in the woman's beer when she was in the bathroom. She told the detective she doesn't remember leaving the restaurant with Matthews but ended up at his home where she said he sexually assaulted her.
"She was unable to move or talk or anything like that," testified Comeaux." She wanted to stop it but was unable to," said the detective. The woman said she did not regain her memory until early the next morning.
Douglas Cohen, Matthews' attorney, told CBS News Colorado, "the hearing isn't finished. The DA's presentation isn't even close to the whole story."
When the preliminary hearing resumes in September, prosecutors have indicated they will present more testimony from police investigators who spoke to Matthews' alleged victims.
On the stand, Comeaux also discussed the results of a search warrant of Matthews' home. He said police found several phones and laptops and USB drives. But he said they did not find a Jenga game they were looking for. Many women have said Matthews played Jenga with them at his home. Comeaux also said police found five prescription bottles but he did not identify what they were for.
The detective said investigators conducted forensic searches on Matthews' electronics and found videos and photos of women who don't remember the videos or pictures being taken.
Matthews is being held in the Denver City Jail on $5 million bond.
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