Woman calls date with convicted Denver cardiologist Stephen Matthews: ‘Scariest day of my life. I thought I might die”

Stephen Matthews, a former cardiologist who was convicted He is said to have drugged eleven women and sexually abused nine of them over the summer. He faces sentencing in a Denver courtroom on Friday afternoon. Prior to this sentencing, one of the women convicted of drug use told her story on camera in an interview with CBS News Colorado.

The woman, Allie, 34, says her “date” with Matthews in January 2023 “was the scariest day of my life. …Honestly, the only time I thought I might die. I didn’t know what would happen to me if I lost consciousness.”

Allie, who asked that her last name not be used, said she hopes telling her story “gives another survivor the courage to come forward and seek justice for themselves and healing.”

Matthews was convicted in August on 35 of 38 counts related to drug use and sexual assault of numerous women between 2019 and 2023. He met the women on dating apps like Hinge and Tinder. But the women who testified against Matthews – including Allie – told remarkably similar stories about how they had drinks with Matthews and then lost memory of what happened next. Some said they remembered waking up naked after having non-consensual sex with Matthews.

Allie said that although she lost her memory after drinking at Matthews’ west Denver townhouse, she did not believe she had been sexually assaulted but rather believed she had been drugged.

“I was excited to go on the first date and get to know him,” she said after the two connected on the Hinge app.

She said she liked that he was a doctor whose profile showed he was a dog owner who enjoyed being outdoors. Allie works in healthcare, is a dog owner, and also enjoys hiking.

But after meeting Matthews at a bar for a drink, she agreed to go with him to his townhouse to let his dog out. When she got there, she said she went to the bathroom, but when she came out he had mixed her a drink that she never asked for.

“I didn’t want to be rude or offend him, so I drank,” she remembers.

After drinking about a quarter of it, she quickly began to feel physically unwell, her speech was slurred, and she began to lose her memory and motor skills.

“I remember one time I fell all the way to the floor and looked up at him as he was trying to film me,” she said.

She said the cardiologist put his arm around her neck and shoulders, put her in a headlock and pulled her head back to forcibly kiss her. She said it was “painful” and she couldn’t escape.

Allie said she thought to herself that she had to leave: “Otherwise I won’t be able to leave. I left within a few minutes, I didn’t think I would ever be able to leave.

During the interview, she said she ran away from Matthew’s house, initially leaving behind her coat, purse and shoes.

“I just had this strong desire to escape,” she said.

She said she called an Uber and vomited “uncontrollably” in the car. Several other women who say Matthews drugged them also said they vomited.

The next day, Allie went to an urgent care center in Denver hoping to get tested to see if she had been given a date rape drug. She said after 20 minutes, the center said they didn’t have the supplies to conduct a drug test.

“I felt completely rejected,” Allie said, “like they weren’t taking it seriously.”

She believes urgent care centers like the one she visited need to be better equipped to treat women who believe they have been drugged.

For several months she felt isolated by what happened.

“I did absolutely everything I could to make it my fault. I thought I was alone, I thought there was something wrong with me that made him want to hurt me,” she said.

But after discussing her experience with a friend, she was directed to a Facebook group where women had shared similar experiences after dating Matthews. She felt validated when she saw she wasn’t alone and then reported her experience to Denver police.

Testifying against Matthews proved difficult as Allie now says the trial was “retraumatizing” as Matthews’ lawyers made her feel like she was on trial.

But the jury’s guilty verdicts represented a major step.

“It was a huge relief that the jury said they believed me and the other women.”

She says she has struggled with anxiety, depression and nightmares since her single date with Stephen Matthews and is now extremely vigilant about her safety.

“It’s tiring,” she said.

She plans to talk about these issues when she testifies again at Matthews’ sentencing on Friday.

“I will ask the judge for the maximum sentence. Every day there is at least one moment in my day that revolves around this person who hurt me.”

Allie says she has “no doubt” that there are more of Matthews’ victims who have not come forward or have not been identified. She pointed to the large number of women Matthews met through dating apps.

“I believe that the survivors who have come forward are just the tip of the iceberg.”

Allie said she found helpful resources to deal with what she went through through advocacy organizations like Blue Bench, which works to prevent sexual violence, and Jane Doe No More, which aims to empower survivors of sexual abuse.

Matthews is being held in the Denver Jail on a $5 million bond. His lawyer, Douglas Cohen, declined to comment.