A Beaumont doctor, who was arrested in 2020 during an anti-human trafficking bust, was sentenced to probation on Monday morning for trying to solicit a minor online.
Dr. Sadiq Ali, of Houston, was sentenced on Monday to three years of probation by Judge Raquel West in Jefferson County's 252nd District Court.
He pleaded guilty in February 2024 to attempting to commit online solicitation of a minor, which is a 3rd degree felony, as part of a plea agreement, according to file stories. The charge does not require him to register as a sex offender and the plea agreement does not stipulate it either Judge West noted in court on Monday.
Ali completed a court-ordered treatment program as part of the plea agreement.
Judge West also ordered that as part of the plea agreement Ali will be placed on a curfew from 10 p.m. - 6 a.m., must pay a $1,500 fine, will be forbidden from using social media and will only be allowed to use online computer services that are work-related.
Ali faces up to 10 years in prison if he violates the terms of his probation.
Ali, who is a Southeast Texas rheumatologist, pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of attempted online solicitation of a minor, a 3rd degree felony.
Previously Ali rejected a plea deal with a 5-year sentencing cap.
Ali had his license suspended by the Texas Medical Board in December 2020 due to his arrest by Beaumont Police who, at the time, charged him with prostitution with someone under 18-years-old, which is a 2nd degree felony.
By December 2021 the medical board lifted the temporary suspension and put Ali under an medical board order for five years that prohibits him from practicing medicine on minors and requires him to be chaperoned anytime he examines a patient according to the medical board's website.
Ali was arrested alongside Beaumont doctor Dr. Rajen Bhulabhai Desai in an anti-human trafficking bust.
Beaumont Police and the Jefferson County District Attorney's Office worked together for a two-day joint operation in October 2020, targeting what officials called "sex buyers," Officer Carol Riley said in a news release following the bust.
The 21 men arrested were charged with soliciting sexual relations from both minors and adults.
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This is a developing story. We will update with more if and when we receive more confirmed information.
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