Michael Ozst and Byron Trefson
4 hours ago
A still image taken from the video included in the investigative log shows Derek Robertson.
IONIA, Mich. (Wood) — An Ionia therapist has been charged with criminal sexual conduct after having an affair with a patient.
Derek Robertson was charged with one count of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct, three counts of medical fraud, and three counts of distributing and manufacturing controlled substances, according to court documents.
State investigators say Robertson, a former social worker based at Viewpoint Counseling in Ionia, had been with a woman he had been seeing for post-traumatic stress disorder for nearly a year and a half. had a sexual relationship.
Investigators said Robertson admitted to having sex with patients in his office and at home.
The woman told investigators that she had sex during visitation twice a week from June 2021 to June 2022. According to the state, Ms. Robertson admitted that she continued to charge her for treatment even when she only had sex with her between appointments.
During therapy, she told Robertson she was sexually assaulted in 2019. Her investigators said Robertson insisted on having sex with her in a setting similar to where her assault took place, which triggered the trauma for her.
Robertson’s license was suspended on April 10 by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulation.
In late March, Viewpoint Counseling posted a Facebook post confirming that Robertson was no longer working in the building.
