November 2019

Doctor caught in police sting

A family doctor faces being struck off after he was caught in a police sting trying to groom a 13-year-old girl online.

Dr Hafeez Awan, 44, swapped a string of inappropriate messages — unaware the girl was an undercover detective.

During several hours of conversations over 16 days, Awan adopted the chatroom username Medic333 and asked: “R u single? R u at school?”

He also asked for her number because he wanted to hear her voice.

But the Pakistan-born GP, who worked in Leeds, continued the conversation even when he was told she was 13.

He denied wrongdoing, but was found guilty of sexually motivated misconduct by a Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service panel.

Since the investigation, Awan has emigrated to Canada and has opened a medical practice.