ST. LOUIS — A former St. Louis doctor was sentenced to eight years in prison after pleading guilty to distributing child pornography last month.
Judge John A. Ross sentenced Ashu Joshi to 96 months in prison Wednesday. Joshi entered the plea on Sept. 17; it was accepted by a U.S. District judge.
According to the plea agreement, Joshi was a 46-year-old doctor when he began a relationship with a 16-year-old girl. He met the teen through her mother, who was a former patient of his in Kentucky.
Charging documents indicated in the summer of 2018 Joshi went to Kentucky to pick up the girl and then drove her back to his home in St. Louis County to have sex. He also directed the teen to make pornographic images and videos of herself.
The girl sent Joshi 333 files over Facebook Messenger – including several pornographic images. Facebook reported the interactions to the FBI, which led to investigations in St. Louis County and Bowling Green, Kentucky.
The FBI, St. Louis County Police Department and the Regional Computer Crimes Education and Enforcement Group investigated the case.
According to U.S. News and World Report, Joshi was a doctor of internal medicine affiliated with SSM Health Saint Louis University Hospital.
