The Alachua County Sheriff’s Office arrested a 40-year-old Newberry man on child pornography charges Wednesday after a monthslong investigation into an online tip.
According to the arrest report, an investigator from ACSO’s Digital Crime Unit connected Dr. Chintan Shah to a video depicting the sexual abuse of a child. Following the arrest, Shah was placed on administrative leave and trespassed from UF.
Shah’s IP address was connected to the video through a subpoena. The video was shared on Kik, a messaging app that’s garnered negative attention in the past for its use in other child sexual abuse cases. According to the arrest report, Shah cried when the Kik account was brought to his attention.
Connections were also made among other email addresses and social media accounts belonging to Shah, according to the arrest report. Shah’s wife also confirmed some of the information to investigators.
Investigators also uncovered conversations with a 19-year-old woman Shah had allegedly sexually groomed since she was 17. Sexual grooming is when someone forms emotional connection with a vulnerable person under the age of consent to make them more open to sexual abuse.
In one of the conversations, Shah reportedly role-played with the woman about raping her 10-year-old sister. Investigators noted it’s unknown whether the woman actually has a sister.
Shah was booked into the Alachua County Jail.
Contact Julianna Bendeck at jbendeck@alligator.org.
Julianna Bendeck is a first-year journalism student and the Summer 2026 criminal justice reporter. She previously worked as a contributing writer and race and equity reporter at The Alligator. Outside the newsroom, she enjoys reading, surfing the web and playing video games.
