BOSTON — A former anesthesiologist at Tufts Medical Center was convicted by a federal jury Oct. 10 of attempted sex trafficking of a child after he was caught by a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) undercover operation.
Sadeq Ali Quraishi, 47, was convicted of one count of attempted sex trafficking of a child. U.S. District Court Judge Angel Kelley scheduled sentencing for Jan. 28, 2025. Quraishi was indicted by a federal grand jury in November 2022.
“As a society, we put our trust in doctors and hold them to the highest ethical standards. Quraishi betrayed that trust by seeking out and attempting to pay to sexually abuse a child,” said HSI New England Special Agent in Charge Michael J. Krol. “HSI will never relent in our pursuit of bringing child predators to justice.”
“The trafficking of women and minors for commercial sex is ever present in our communities and sex buyers from all walks of life drive this demand. As a practicing physician, Sadeq Quraishi was in a position of trust and expected to possess a strong ethical and moral compass. Instead, he engaged in extended negotiations with a purported trafficker and ultimately agreed to buy sex with a 14-year-old girl. Fortunately, this was a law enforcement operation and no real child was involved, but sadly that is not always the case,” said acting U.S. Attorney Joshua S. Levy. “We are actively prosecuting the men and women who traffic adults and kids for profit, but in order to make a real dent in this pernicious conduct, we also must go after the demand part of the equation — the people who are trolling the internet and trying to purchase sex with little kids. I hope that every coward behind a keyboard who is thinking about engaging in the rape of the child under the auspices of a commercial transaction thinks twice — you may very well be talking to an undercover federal agent. Don’t do it. If you do, you are looking at a minimum of 10 years or more behind bars.”
In November 2022, Quraishi, then a practicing anesthesiologist at Tufts Medical Center in Boston, responded to an online advertisement offering commercial sex with two young girls. Through an ensuing text conversation with undercover HSI New England special agents posing as the seller of the two girls, Quraishi agreed to pay $250 for a sex act to be performed by a 14-year-old girl. Shortly thereafter, Quraishi obtained cash from an ATM and drove from his Boston home to a Waltham hotel to meet with the purported seller. Once at the hotel, he met with an undercover HSI special agent, confirmed he had the money to pay for the commercial sex act, and accepted a keycard he believed would give him access to the room where the 14-year-old girl would be located. During that meeting, HSI special agents arrested Quraishi and found him to be in possession of exactly $250.
The charge of attempted sex trafficking of a child carries a mandatory minimum sentence of 10 years in prison and provides a maximum sentence of up to life in prison, a term of supervised release of at least five years and a fine of up to $250,000.
HSI’s investigation was led by HSI New England’s Boston Human Trafficking and Smuggling unit.
HSI plays an integral role in combating human trafficking by working with its law enforcement partners to deter, disrupt and dismantle the criminal networks that engage in it. Special agents use their expertise and rely on HSI’s authorities to seize assets and eliminate profit incentives, work with nongovernmental organizations to protect and assist victims, and bring traffickers to justice. HSI leads the DHS Center for Countering Human Trafficking (CCHT) to advance counter human trafficking law enforcement operations, protect victims and enhance prevention efforts. The CCHT integrates the efforts of every component within DHS involved in combating human trafficking, including criminal investigations, victim assistance, identifying and reporting human trafficking, external outreach, intelligence and training.
HSI’s Victim Assistance Program (VAP) provides a critical resource to HSI investigations and criminal prosecutions. The VAP helps preserve victims’ and survivors’ rights, helps connect them with the services they’re legally entitled to receive and provides them with the support they need to fully participate in the criminal justice process.
If you suspect human trafficking, call the HSI Tip Line at 877-4-HSI-TIP. Callers may remain anonymous.