A doctor who carried out a string of sexual assaults on patients has been sentenced to four and a half years in prison.

Adil Shareef, 45, from Churchill Road, Epsom, was found guilty of one count of indecent assault when he was a doctor at The Old Cottage Hospital surgery in Epsom in 2003.

Shareef was also found guilty of four counts of sexual assault between 2004 and 2008 - three on patients and one on a female member of staff - at a different practice.

He was sentenced at Guildford Crown Court on July 2.

Senior investigating officer, Detective Inspector Richard Hamlin, said: "I hope the investigation and subsequent prison sentence handed down to Shareef will go some way to help the victims get on with the rest of their lives.

"Dr Shareef used his position of trust to gain sexual gratification at the expense of a number of women who had placed their trust in him.

"Several of these women were vulnerable at the time and he exploited this in a shameful manner.

"I hope the sentenced passed down will provide reassurance and closure for the victims who had the unenviable task of giving evidence of a personal and sensitive nature in court.

"I admire the strength they showed during the investigation and also at court, and hope they can now put this matter firmly behind them."