Former Hawthorn doctor Con Kyriacou who has been accused of assaulting several women in his Hawthorn GP clinic, faced court for the first time on Monday for allegedly raping and indecently assaulting patients, including a minor.

Even though complaints had been submitted in the past via Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (AHPRA) no charges had been laid until three former patients, decided to go public sharing their harrowing stories with the former GP in back in November.

The three women that sparked the police investigation following a story in The Age are Maria Moutsidis (also known as actress Maria Mercedes), 61, Sandra Rokebrand, 52, and Suzii Crowley, 49.

The former patients had all had independently lodged complaints about Dr Kyriacou’s behaviour, and even through a probe was instructed since the beginning of 2016, AHPA kept claiming it had been investigating the claims of misconduct for more than two years.

In the meantime, Kyriacou voluntarily withdrew from the register of medical practitioners a year later claiming he was suffering from a brain injury.

With the stories of the three women becoming public, dozens of other women came forward claiming to be victims, leading Victoria Police’s sexual offences and child abuse investigation team (SOCIT) in Box Hill to start a new, thorough investigation.

At this point, the 75-year-old former GP has been charged with 34 sexual offences allegedly committed from 1978 to 2004, however, the police investigation is still open meaning more charges could be laid against him. At the moment, his charges include 28 counts of indecent assault, indecent assault of a child aged 16 years, and three counts of rape with sexual penetration, AAP reported.

The accused chose not to comment during the hearing at the Melbourne Magistrates Court, but did respond to the press saying that “the whole thing is stupid”.

His lawyer insisted that his client suffers from “significant cognitive impairment” but the medical diagnosis is set to be challenged in January during professional misconduct proceedings brought against Dr Kyriacou by the health regulator in the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal.

Finally, due to growing concerns regarding the inaction by the national health regulator, another probe into procedures is set to be launched.