Michigan doctor William Murdoch was arrested in a sting after allegedly seeking sex with a 5-year-old child, leading to his firing.
A Michigan doctor has been arrested in an undercover sting operation after allegedly attempting to arrange a sexual relationship with a woman’s 5-year-old daughter, authorities said Wednesday.
Dr. William Murdoch, identified as Associate Director for Family Medicine at Monroe Regional Hospital, was taken into custody by U.S. Marshals after he befriended what he believed was a mother online.
The Port St. Lucie Police Department said an undercover officer posed as the woman in a “platonic relationship” with Murdoch.
Investigators said his ultimate goal was to see if the fictitious mother would allow her child to be “courted by and have a sexual relationship with him.” Police described “stomach churning messages” in which Murdoch detailed grooming tactics and plans to “turn the situation sexual.”
A forensic review of Murdoch’s iCloud revealed disturbing conversations about conception, abortion, and the intentional use of drugs or alcohol to cause birth defects.
Authorities charged him with soliciting a parent to consent to sexual conduct involving a child. He will be extradited to Florida.
ProMedica, which operates Monroe Regional Hospital, said Murdoch’s hospital privileges were “immediately suspended” and his employment terminated.