Duke ER nurse indicted on charges of sexually assaulting patients
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- A grand jury indicted Duke nurse Jomil Uy Tugado on nine charges.
- The indictments allege three separate incidents of touching patients' genitals.
- Tugado has been a nurse in North Carolina since at least 2023.
A Duke emergency room nurse accused of sexually assaulting patients was indicted by a grand jury Monday.
Jomil Uy Tugado, 39, of Durham faces three counts each of sexual contact/penetration under the pretext of medical treatment, sexual activity by a custodian and sexual battery, according to court documents. He was arrested last month and has been held without bail since, The News & Observer previously reported.
The assaults took place between May 23 and Dec. 6, Tugado’s arrest warrants allege.
On at least three separate occasions, Tugado touched incapacitated patients’ genitals, according to the indictments. At least one of the victims had an unspecified mental disability that Tugado knew about, the indictments allege.
State records show Tugado first obtained a nursing license in North Carolina in June 2023. His license was suspended Dec. 18 after the allegations were reported.
Duke Health said last month that Tugado had been placed on administrative leave Dec. 7, according to ABC11, The N&O’s newsgathering partner.
Tugado is set to be arraigned, where he’ll enter an initial plea of guilty or not guilty, next month, court records show.
This story was originally published January 6, 2026 at 1:13 PM with the headline "Duke ER nurse indicted on charges of sexually assaulting patients."
