sniffy
Senior Reporter
22
Interseting Story--details copied for reference.
Kapordelis was a member of Young Life, a Christian organization, and volunteered as camp physician at summer camps in North Georgia.
A report from the U.S. Attorney's office in Atlanta said that Kapordelis is believed to be the fifth person in the United States to be charged with violations of the child sex tourism provisions of the "Protect Act 2003."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A Hall County doctor has been arrested on federal charges of traveling to Russia allegedly to have sex with young boys.
As of 5 p.m. Tuesday, Gregory C. Kapordelis of 2573 Bri
gewater Circle still was in federal custody in New York.
It is not known when he will be returned to Georgia, U.S. Attorney Bill Duffey said.
Telephone calls to Kapordelis' Gainesville h
ome
went unanswered Tuesday afternoon.
The d
octor was taken into custody about 4 p.m. Monday after he arrived at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport on a flight from Russia.
He is charged with traveling for the purpose of engaging in illegal sexual conduct with a minor.
The federal complaint against the 43-year-old U.S. citizen says that between October 2003 and April 2004, he engaged, or attempted to engage, in sex acts with multiple Russian boys as young as 12 in a hotel room and rental property in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Kapordelis has been employed since 1996 as chief of anesthesiology at HealthSouth Gainesville Surgery Center, the complaint said. He also works at Gainesville Anesthesia Services and owns Kapordelis Management Systems. All three have a
1945 Beverly Road address.
Cathy Bowers, a spokeswoman for Northeast Georgia Medical Center, said Kapordelis does not have privileges to practice at the hospital.
"He was
on
our
staf
f years ag
o, but he left to work at HealthSouth," she said.
Nor
theast Georgia Health System owns the HealthSouth building in partnership with a group of local physicians.
"We have part ownership, but we have no control over the day-to-day operations or hiring there," Bowers said.
Monday, two officials of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security assigned to the Atlanta office of investigation interviewed two of Kapordelis' co-workers, head nurse Marie Hernandez and head administrator Karen Fankhauser.
Neither woman could be reached for comment Tuesday.
But in an affidavit filed in the case, they said Kapordelis usually takes one week of vacation per month and when he does, he travels within the United States or to Russia, Africa and the Czech Republ
ic.
Also, Kapordelis has brought children from these countries to live with him for periods of time, the women said.
A report from the U.S. Attorney's office
in Atl
anta sa
id that
Kapordelis is beli
eved to be the fifth person in the United States to be charged with violations of the
child sex tourism provisions of the "Protect Act 2003."
"This arrest is a compelling example of the top priority we place on the protection of children from sexual predators," Duffey said.
"It is also an example of the now virtually routine cooperation between international police organizations and law enforcement officials," he said.
Kapordelis was a member of Young Life, a Christian organization, and volunteered as camp physician at summer camps in North Georgia.
"Our investigation is ongoing and anybody who has any information about Mr. Kapordelis should get in contact with us," Duffey said.
Contact: Special Agent Rodman Bergs
trom at (404) 331-2762, Ext. 5321.
Staff writer Debbie Gilbert contributed to this story.
E-mail: apeabody@gainesvilletimes.com
Interseting Story--details copied for reference.
Kapordelis was a member of Young Life, a Christian organization, and volunteered as camp physician at summer camps in North Georgia.
A report from the U.S. Attorney's office in Atlanta said that Kapordelis is believed to be the fifth person in the United States to be charged with violations of the child sex tourism provisions of the "Protect Act 2003."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
A Hall County doctor has been arrested on federal charges of traveling to Russia allegedly to have sex with young boys.
As of 5 p.m. Tuesday, Gregory C. Kapordelis of 2573 Bri
gewater Circle still was in federal custody in New York.
It is not known when he will be returned to Georgia, U.S. Attorney Bill Duffey said.
Telephone calls to Kapordelis' Gainesville h
ome
went unanswered Tuesday afternoon.
The d
octor was taken into custody about 4 p.m. Monday after he arrived at New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport on a flight from Russia.
He is charged with traveling for the purpose of engaging in illegal sexual conduct with a minor.
The federal complaint against the 43-year-old U.S. citizen says that between October 2003 and April 2004, he engaged, or attempted to engage, in sex acts with multiple Russian boys as young as 12 in a hotel room and rental property in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Kapordelis has been employed since 1996 as chief of anesthesiology at HealthSouth Gainesville Surgery Center, the complaint said. He also works at Gainesville Anesthesia Services and owns Kapordelis Management Systems. All three have a
1945 Beverly Road address.
Cathy Bowers, a spokeswoman for Northeast Georgia Medical Center, said Kapordelis does not have privileges to practice at the hospital.
"He was
on
our
staf
f years ag
o, but he left to work at HealthSouth," she said.
Nor
theast Georgia Health System owns the HealthSouth building in partnership with a group of local physicians.
"We have part ownership, but we have no control over the day-to-day operations or hiring there," Bowers said.
Monday, two officials of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security assigned to the Atlanta office of investigation interviewed two of Kapordelis' co-workers, head nurse Marie Hernandez and head administrator Karen Fankhauser.
Neither woman could be reached for comment Tuesday.
But in an affidavit filed in the case, they said Kapordelis usually takes one week of vacation per month and when he does, he travels within the United States or to Russia, Africa and the Czech Republ
ic.
Also, Kapordelis has brought children from these countries to live with him for periods of time, the women said.
A report from the U.S. Attorney's office
in Atl
anta sa
id that
Kapordelis is beli
eved to be the fifth person in the United States to be charged with violations of the
child sex tourism provisions of the "Protect Act 2003."
"This arrest is a compelling example of the top priority we place on the protection of children from sexual predators," Duffey said.
"It is also an example of the now virtually routine cooperation between international police organizations and law enforcement officials," he said.
Kapordelis was a member of Young Life, a Christian organization, and volunteered as camp physician at summer camps in North Georgia.
"Our investigation is ongoing and anybody who has any information about Mr. Kapordelis should get in contact with us," Duffey said.
Contact: Special Agent Rodman Bergs
trom at (404) 331-2762, Ext. 5321.
Staff writer Debbie Gilbert contributed to this story.
E-mail: apeabody@gainesvilletimes.com