CINCINNATI — Parents are seeking answers after learning their child's doctor at Cincinnati Children's Hospital faces federal child pornography charges.
We first reported Tuesday that Howard M. Saal, a former geneticist and dysmorphologist at Cincinnati Children's, is facing multiple federal charges for transporting and possessing child porn. We've also confirmed that Saal is now out on bond with conditions to his release.
After hearing of the charges, some parents reached out to express concerns about their child's interactions with Saal. One parent told us she received a letter from Cincinnati Children's Hospital informing her that Saal is no longer employed at the hospital, but it didn't give a reason. On Aug. 3, her daughter had an appointment, and she asked hospital employees about Saal's departure.
"I had no idea any of this was going on, and they just were very tight-lipped; they didn't say anything about it," she said.
WATCH: We speak with parents about their concerns over Saal's child porn charges
This mother wanted to stay anonymous because she's afraid her daughter could have been a victim of Saal's.
She told us that her child has been a patient of his for the past 10 years, and that Saal always had a camera around his neck during appointments.
"Was my daughter a victim? He was odd, he did take pictures of my daughter and sometimes not in my presence, and so that is on my mind," she said.
We asked her how many times Saal took pictures of her daughter without her being in the room.
"At least a handful," she said. "He would say that they were taking glamour shots."
Megan Fowler also reached out to us, telling us a similar story about Saal.
"He always told us it was for their chart, now all of a sudden these pictures are not in their chart, according to Cincinnati Children's or according to their MyChart or any records that I printed, so my question is, as well, where are these images?" Fowler said.
Unlike the other parent we spoke with, Fowler said she did not receive a letter or any correspondence letting her know that Saal was no longer employed with Cincinnati Children's. We asked Fowler if any other doctor who has treated her daughter has worn a camera around their neck during appointments.
"No, and she's been seeing specialists for 16 years," Fowler said. "I even asked the detective, I said, 'Well, how do we know that these aren't on the black web? How do we know that he didn't sell these images? Like, how do we as parents know that our children's medical information wasn't leaked?'"
Court documents say a Hamilton County Sheriff's Office detective got a cyber tip in February regarding searches for child pornography that originated from Saal's IP address. In June, authorities executed a search warrant. The FBI said it found more than 153,000 images and 470 videos of child sex abuse. Some of the material involves victims as young as newborns.
In a statement to WCPO 9 News Tuesday, Cincinnati Children's said, "The safety and care of children is at the core of what we do and who we are."
"We absolutely condemn the exploitation of children," the statement continues. "We are cooperating fully with the authorities and Howard Saal is no longer employed with Cincinnati Children's."
On Wednesday, we made multiple attempts to speak to Saal. We first called, which went to voicemail, but we weren't able to leave a message because the automated message said the mailbox was full. So, we visited Saal at his home where WCPO 9 News anchor Bret Buganski spoke with him through the door. Once Buganski identified himself, Saal replied with "no comment."
While Saal waits for his next court date, one parent is worried about how she's going to have to tell her daughter about why he's no longer her doctor.
"It's greatly going to affect my daughter, who has sensory issues and trust issues, and a vulnerable population, it's even harder for them to trust," she said.
We also reached out to Cincinnati Children's Hospital again on Wednesday to ask why some parents were given notice about Saal's employment status, but others weren't. As of Wednesday night, we are still waiting to hear back. We'll continue to press for answers on behalf of concerned parents.
