New York City, United States

An Indian-origin former New York City senior health advisor was fired from his job at SIGA Technologies after he was caught on camera confessing about participating in drug-fuelled sex parties during the COVID-19 pandemic.

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Dr Jay Varma, who was responsible for coordinating the response of the city to the pandemic, was removed from his position as executive vice president and chief medical officer at SIGA Technologies.

After his termination, Dr Varma's hidden camera footage was shared by podcaster Steven Crowder.

In the video, Dr Varma was seen boasting about taking part in underground raves and hosting sex parties as the city remained in severe lockdowns.

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After the termination of Dr Varma, SIGA Technologies on September 23 said, “Pursuant to the terms of his employment agreement, Dr Varma's service on the Company's Board of Directors also automatically ended effective immediately”. 

Here's what NYC health advisor confessed in the viral video

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In the video released by the podcaster, Dr Varma was recorded as saying, “I had to be kind of sneaky about it...I was running the entire Covid response for the city…we rented a hotel...we all took like, you know, molly [E*stasy/MDMA] … 8 to 10 of us were in a room...like just being naked with friends…”

“We went to some underground, like, dance parties… and we were all rolling. We were all taking Molly [MDMA]. Everybody was high," he added.

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“I did all this deviant, sexual stuff while I was on TV and people were like, ‘Aren’t you afraid? Aren’t you embarrassed?’. And I was like, no, I really like being my authentic self," he said in the recording.

After the release of the video, Dr Varma acknowledged his actions in a statement which read, “In those private conversations that were secretly recorded, spliced, diced and taken out of context, I referred to events that transpired four years ago. Between April 2020 – May 2021, I participated in two private gatherings. I take responsibility for not using the best judgement at the time.”

(With input from agencies)