Former US gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar has been stabbed in prison, 5 years into his sentence.

Warning: This post deals with descriptions of sexual assault and trauma and might be triggering for some readers.

Larry Nassar, the former USA Gymnastics doctor who was convicted of decades of sexual abuse of women and girls, was reportedly stabbed in federal prison on Sunday US time.

A prison leader confirmed the news to NBC News, telling the outlet that the 59-year-old was stabbed twice in the neck, twice in the back and six times in the chest, resulting in a collapsed lung.

Nassar is reportedly in stable condition, said the prison leader after confirming the information with staff on duty.

In 2018, hundreds of women and girls gave victim impact statements against Nassar, ending the biggest sexual abuse scandal in US history.

Between 1992 and his arrest in 2017, the former sports physician had more than 500 alleged victims, including nine Olympians, many of whom he molested hundreds of times.

Nassar molested multiple victims while their parents watched on, unknowingly. 

He molested victims under blankets in busy gyms full of people, made girls completely undress unnecessarily in his office, and many of his victims said the medical professional put his fingers inside of them with his bare hands.

Nassar would disguise abuse as medical treatment. Image: gymnasticsdoctor.com/YouTube.

In 2016, the Indy Star broke a story on the abuse of two victims, and later that year Nassar was charged with the sexual assault of one child, who was six when the abuse began in 1998.

The following month, he was charged with child pornography charges, after the FBI found more than 37,000 images and videos inside his home, including a video Nassar allegedly made himself. 

Despite the charges, many in the community refused to believe them, and he even got 2700 votes after running for the local school board. But the allegations kept coming, and so did the victims' harrowing stories. 

In January 2017, his wife Stephanie filed for divorce and received sole custody of their three children, and in July he was sentenced to 60 years in federal prison after pleading guilty to the porn charges.

In January 2018, he received a sentence of 175 years in Michigan state prison after being found guilty on multiple counts of sexual abuse against multiple girls.

After his sentencing, the judge declared: "I just signed your death warrant."

At his hearing, 156 current and former gymnasts read deeply personal and graphic impact statements about the abuse he subjected them to. 

156 survivors gave victim impact statements in court. Image: Alex Wong/Getty.

Kyle Stephens told her abuser on the stand the abuse started "when I still had not lost all my baby teeth". 

She said it started with him exposing himself, and later he would masturbate in front of her, rubbing his erect penis on her bare feet. 

"Perhaps you have figured it out by now, but little girls don't stay little forever. They grow into strong women who return to destroy your world," she told her attacker. 

After earlier being assaulted at a prison in Arizona, hours after being released into the general prison population, he was transferred to the Florida Penitentiary which was known for being safer.

According to AP News, the Florida prison where he was stabbed is experiencing staffing shortages. 

In January 2020, USA Gymnastics filed for bankruptcy after 100 lawsuits representing more than 350 athletes in various courts across the country were levelled at the organisation, who blame the group for failing to supervise Nassar.

They agreed to a $380 million settlement with more than 500 women and girls.

Feature image: Getty.

If this post brings up any issues for you, or if you just feel like you need to speak to someone, please call 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) – the national sexual assault, domestic and family violence counselling service. It doesn’t matter where you live, they will take your call and, if need be, refer you to a service closer to home.