Former medical doctor convicted of child rape in New Bedford

NEW BEDFORD, Mass. (WLNE) — The Bristol County District Attorney announced today that a former medical doctor was convicted of child rape in New Bedford.

42-year-old Sujan Kayastha of Dartmouth was a former medical doctor at St. Luke’s Hospital in New Bedford.

Kayastha was sentenced to 12 years followed by 5 years of supervised probation upon release from custody.

He was convicted yesterday of rape of a child aggravated by age difference, electronic enticement of a child for commercial sex, possession of child pornography, posing a child in the nude, and sending obscene matter to a child.

According to prosecutors, the defendant first met a fourteen-year-old boy in September of 2018 online, later exchanging nude photographs and videos with the child.

Prosecutors said Kayastha knew that the child was under 18 years of age.

On December 6, 2018, the defendant drove to Attleboro where he picked up the boy, who resided in a group home in the area.

The defendant drove the boy to the Shangri-La Motel in Seekonk where he paid the minor victim $200 to engage in a sex act with him.

Attleboro Police were alerted after a staff member of the group home reported suspected sexual exploitation of the victim.

Attleboro Police were able to recover online records which included communications between the defendant and victim, along with nude photographs and videos that were exchanged between the two.

The defendant did admit to police to having sex with the minor victim.