A junior doctor from Lewisham, who helped run a dark website where people shared images of child sexual abuse, has been jailed for six years.
Dr Kabir Garg, 33, of Station Road, worked as a psychiatrist at South London and Maudsley (SLaM) NHS Trust – which has hospitals across south east London – between May 2021 and November last year.
Garg pleaded guilty to eight charges, including facilitating the sexual exploitation of children, three counts each of making and distributing indecent images of children, and possession of prohibited images.
A National Crime Agency (NCA) spokesperson said his crimes were “appalling” and that, as a psychiatrist, “he knew full well the devastating impact and trauma that abuse causes children”.
As a moderator for a site called ‘The Annex’, Garg helped run the 90,000-member-strong online community “like a company”.
In an online statement, the NCA said: “Investigations showed that Garg was initially a member, but dedicated time and effort to becoming sufficiently trusted to be invited to be a moderator.
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“He was responsible for enforcing the rules of the site and removing members who did not comply.
“He also provided advice on how to evade law enforcement, shared and encouraged other users to share links to child abuse material.”
The Annex, which is no longer active, was run like a company with roughly 30 administrators working around-the-clock shifts.
People accessed the site through Tor browser, a platform used to browse the dark web – a part of the internet hidden from commonly-used search engines.
Officers swooped on Garg’s flat in November 2022 and discovered the site open on his laptop, with Garg logged into his moderator account.
Police recovered over 7,000 child abuse images and videos, plus messages showing him applying for, and being promoted to a site moderator rank.
According to the NCA, his online communications “clearly demonstrated his sexual interest in children and his role as a moderator”.
Medical journals found on his laptop also showed knew about the devastating impact these crimes have on children.
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They had titles such as ‘Puberty and Adolescent Sexuality’, ‘A Study on Child Abuse India’, and ‘Effects and Aftermath of Rape’.
Adam Priestley, from the National Crime Agency, said: “Garg was involved in facilitating child sexual abuse on a significant scale.
“He used the dark web to access a global community of paedophiles sharing and discussing horrific crimes against children.”
“As a doctor of psychiatry, he knew full well the devastating impact and trauma that abuse causes children, but this clearly did not deter him,” he added.
The FBI has also arrested and convicted five men in the US for their involvement in running the site, with one sentenced to 28 years in prison.
Garg was sentenced at Woolwich Crown Court last Friday, June 23.
He will be subject to a Serious Harm Prevention Order and is on the Sex Offenders Register for life.
