Phoenix hospital technician arrested for child exploitation

PHOENIX — A behavioral health technician who worked at Phoenix Children’s Hospital has been arrested on suspicion of sexually abusing minors.

Jaydeep Patel, 31, was arrested last week after his internet service provider alerted police in late 2024 that his account was in possession of child sexual abuse material, court documents state.

Police reportedly served a search warrant at Patel’s home, as well as on multiple social media accounts tied to his cellphone number. There, they found several explicit images and videos of minors, some of which allegedly showed parts of Patel’s home or body.

In addition to the images, several chat logs were recovered wherein Patel “openly [requested] child sexual abuse materials for his personal sexual gratification,” court documents state.

In some of the chat exchanges, Patel identified himself as a security officer at a hospital. Police confirmed that he was employed at Phoenix Children’s Hospital as a behavioral health technician at the time of his arrest.

Patel is facing nine counts of sexual exploitation of minors. Each is a class 2 felony that carries a minimum of 10 years in prison.

The hospital released this statement: 

The safety of our patients and their families is our top priority. In accordance with our policies, we conduct thorough background checks during the pre-employment screening process and on regular intervals for current employees. This individual is no longer employed with us, and we are in full cooperation with law enforcement officials.

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