An already disgraced children’s intensive care doctor who used social media apps in attempts to groom a child for sex offences in Margate has been jailed.
Salman Siddiqi, who formerly worked at The Royal Hospital London as a locum paediatric Intensive Care Unit Consultant, sent explicit images of himself to another user who he believed was only 14 years old.
Online exchanges were first initiated by Siddiqi on 7 January 2023, when he messaged a person, who he knew as a boy called Lee. The conversations were clearly sexual in nature and included messages relating to his desires to abuse a child.
Even though Lee made it clear he was only 14 years old, Siddiqi replied he was fine with this and after sending several indecent images arranged to meet the child at his place of work, within the grounds of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Hospital. He had been employed through an agency to fill shifts as a locum paediatric doctor at the East Kent Hospitals Trust.
The meeting was intended to take place during the early hours of 8 January, however, unbeknown to Siddiqi, Lee did not exist – his profile was part of a fictitious account and he was caught in a ‘paedo’ hunter style sting.
The 44-year-old was arrested at the scene and the following day pleaded guilty at Folkestone Magistrates’ Court to charges of engaging in sexual communication with a child and attempting to arrange or facilitate the commission of a child sex offence.
Today (June 30) Siddiqi, of Hornchurch, Greater London was sentenced at Canterbury Crown Court to two years and four months’ imprisonment. He was also made subject of a sexual harm prevention order and added to the sex offenders register.
‘Risk to the public’
DC Deniz Aslan, of the Paedophile Online Investigation Team, said: ‘Siddiqi made it explicitly clear that he intended to commit very serious sexual offences involving a young child and the graphic detail he included in his messages was hugely concerning.
“We will do everything in our power to proactively target those who seek to commit sexual offences against children and ensure they receive a prison sentence. It is clear Siddiqi is a risk to the public, and he now faces the consequences of his abhorrent desires.
“This case acts as a reminder to parents of children who have mobile phones and tablets to speak to them and help them understand the precautions they should take when using the internet, or the many instant messaging services that are available.
“Children should only communicate with people that they know personally and report any suspicions or inappropriate advances from strangers to their parents, schools or the police.”
‘Severity of online grooming’
At the time of the ‘sting’ the ‘silent hunter’ responsible told The Isle of Thanet News: “I chased him through A&E and he was using a key card to open private doors. I was on the phone to 999. My concern was he was a doctor and around kids.
“I catch online groomers and try and fund child protection. I try to campaign for better laws and guidelines for the police to do a greater job as the public shouldn’t be doing this but the NCA has stated they can’t handle the tsunami of paedophilia online.
“Thanet parents need to know the severity of online grooming and the rise of it and the lack of funding for our amazing police force. They need more boots on the ground, posing as children and more money for operations.
“It’s not cheap for them as they have guidelines whereas it cost me £40 for a phone and a top up of £20 and I can catch people.
“I don’t do this for fame, likes or shares but to wake up the system and the people to safeguard our cubs.”
Siddiqi had previously been suspended by the Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) for a month after a hearing last July in connection with failing to report being cautioned for indecent exposure in 2019.
He received a caution from police after exposing his genitals in Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park. According to Tribunal documents he was apprehended by members of the public until police arrived.
