Former Cincinnati Children’s Doctor Faces Child Pornography Charges

Handcuffs and stethoscope on white background. — Source: Pla2na / Getty

A former physician at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital is facing federal charges after investigators say they found more than 150,000 images and hundreds of videos of child sexual abuse material in his possession.

Howard M. Saal (73) appeared in federal court Tuesday after the FBI’s Child Exploitation Task Force linked his home internet address to image searches for child pornography. According to court records, a cyber tip in February led detectives to Saal’s IP address, where investigators say he uploaded an explicit image of minors to conduct multiple online searches.

Authorities say the recovered material includes 153,000 images and 470 videos, some showing newborn victims. The FBI says none of the evidence so far involves patients or children connected to Cincinnati Children’s.

Saal, once a geneticist and dysmorphologist at the hospital, no longer works there. In a statement, Cincinnati Children’s condemned the exploitation of children and said it is cooperating fully with investigators.

During questioning, prosecutors say Saal acknowledged viewing illegal images, allegedly telling investigators it “bothers” him but that’s why he looks at them.

Transporting or possessing child pornography can each carry a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison. The Hamilton County Sheriff’s Office is urging anyone who believes they may have been victimized by Saal to contact detectives.