A Michigan family practice doctor was arrested on charges that he attempted to solicit sex with a minor, in an undercover sting operation conducted by the Port St. Lucie Police Department in Florida. NBC Miami reports that Dr. William J. Murdoch was apprehended by the U.S. Marshals Service after being accused of reaching out to what he believed was a parent, seeking permission for sexual contact with their 5-year-old child.
The investigation, which began in June, according to NBC Miami, involved Murdoch communicating with an undercover detective who was posing as the mother of the child. Murdoch allegedly sought to establish a platonic relationship with the supposed mother, to gauge whether she would allow her child to engage in sexual activity with him. During the communication, the doctor sent messages that were described as "stomach churning" by the police, detailing his intentions to groom the child.
WPBF mentions that some of the exchanges between Murdoch and the undercover detective included disturbing topics such as conception, full-term abortions, and the intentional use of drugs and alcohol to induce birth defects. These revelations emerged from a search conducted on Murdoch's iCloud and messaging account, uncovering his alleged plans and dialogues of disturbing nature.
Dr. William J. Murdoch, who was arrested in Michigan, is to be extradited to Florida where he will face charges stemming from these allegations. The explicit nature of Murdoch's communications and his purported preparedness to exploit his medical knowledge for malevolent purposes, has added a particularly sinister aspect to the case, NBC Miami reported. Murdoch's medical expertise allegedly lent itself to discussions on "other alarming dark web hunts," a term used by authorities to describe his online activities.
