Alabama physician Dr. Janaki Earla was arrested after inappropriately touching and trying to have sex with one of his underaged female patients. According to local news station WBRC 6, Blount County investigators were alerted after the 17-year-old patient told her mother about the doctor.

Blount County District Attorney Pamela Casey said, “We got information last week that a doctor had been inappropriate with a patient who was under the age of 18,” according to an article from the news station published yesterday (Oct. 13). The child’s mother told authorities that during an exam, Earla used his stethoscope to fondle the minor. He also complimented the way she looked before adding his personal number to her cell phone.

After the doctor began sending his patient “detailed sexual messages,” she told her mother what was going on. “I commend these parents and this child for the relationship they had that she felt comfortable that she could say, ‘Hey mom, this isn’t right. Is he supposed to be doing this?” the district attorney said. Officials then stepped in and began to communicate with Earla while pretending to be the teen.

Earla continued to text who he thought was the minor, offering her money for sex and asking her to travel with him. “At that point, he set up a meeting in Oneonta at a hotel to engage in sexual contact in exchange for money,” Casey shared. By then, enough evidence was gathered for authorities to intervene.

According to police, the physician arrived at the hotel with alcohol, condoms and money for the teen. “It is scary. We want to think when we take our child to the doctor that this is one of the people they can trust the most, other than their parents, to provide them with good advice and assist them when they need help. We have to be careful about who we allow our children around and whether they are alone. We can never let our guard down as parents,” the district attorney said.

The doctor was charged with first-degree human trafficking of a minor. “One element of human trafficking is if you exchange something in consideration of sexual conduct or contact and the person is under the age of 19. He traveled there in exchange of such contact with monetary consideration,” Casey added. The case is still being reviewed and officials are investigating whether or not other victims were involved.