A resident doctor training in family medicine in Western Massachusetts was ordered held without bail Tuesday on federal allegations that he possessed large amounts of child pornography and secretly recorded pediatric patients during exams, according to court documents.
Dr. Bradford David Ferrick, 32, made his initial appearance in US District Court in Boston on a sole count of possession of child pornography, records show. He did not enter a plea, and Magistrate Judge Jennifer C. Boal ordered him held in custody until a detention and probable cause hearing on March 21.
A federal public defender assigned to represent Ferrick declined to comment. Court records show Ferrick plans to retain private counsel.
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In searches of Ferrick’s Amherst apartment and a Winchester home where he lives with his parents, investigators found thousands of illicit images on dozens of electronic devices, some depicting victims as young as 6 years old, authorities allege.
Investigators also found video footage of Ferrick conducting medical exams with another doctor, according to an FBI affidavit.
“In one video a boy says that he is ‘14 years old’ and in another video a boy states that he is ‘going into 9th grade,’” the filing said. “It does not appear the individuals in the room are aware they are being recorded during either exam.”
In the first video, the boy’s mother is present and she and her son are discussing the boy’s genitals, which “cannot be seen in the video; however, Ferrick can be heard discussing” them, according to the affidavit.
He allegedly recorded the exams with a hidden camera designed to be worn as a bracelet, the affidavit said.
Authorities said Ferrick graduated last year from State University of New York Upstate Medical University in Syracuse and began a medical residency in July focused on family medicine with Baystate Franklin Family Medicine, including rotations at facilities in Greenfield, Deerfield, and Springfield.
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Federal authorities have set up a web page for people who believe they or their children may have been victimized by Ferrick in his work capacity.
“We cannot comment on pending criminal charges,” said Chalonda James, a spokesperson for Baystate Health in a statement.
“Bradford Ferrick has been on unpaid administrative leave from Baystate Franklin Medical Center since mid-February,” James said. “We are cooperating with law enforcement authorities as they proceed with their investigation.”
Ferrick was initially charged last month in Woburn District Court with four state counts of child pornography possession. He pleaded not guilty and was released Feb. 15 on $50,000 cash bail with orders to remain on home confinement, legal filings show.
The court-appointed attorney who represented Ferrick for bail purposes in the state case declined to comment Wednesday.
In the federal case, investigators searched another home that belonged to relatives of Ferrick, the affidavit said. The relatives, who weren’t named in the filing, have two toddlers and consented to a search of the property, which turned up a hidden camera in a bathroom designed to resemble a wall outlet, officials said.
The affidavit said authorities had previously found the box that the device came in at Ferrick’s Winchester residence and that Ferrick had purchased “numerous hidden camera devices.”
The investigation began in January, when police in Winchester reviewed three cybertips from a line maintained by the the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children about a Google account that was uploading suspected child pornography.
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One file had been uploaded in November 2021 shortly after 5 a.m., while another 10 were uploaded on March 27, 2022, records show. Both uploads were traced to an IP address in the Syracuse, N.Y., area where Ferrick was attending medical school, the affidavit said.
Additional tips allegedly showed illicit material being uploaded at an IP address associated with the Winchester home where Ferrick lives with his parents. During the first search of that property on Feb. 13, Ferrick and his parents declined to speak with law enforcement after receiving Miranda warnings, according to legal filings.
That day, investigators seized 61 electronic devices, including external hard drives, computers, cell phones, hidden camera systems, and memory cards that contained “thousands of images and videos” allegedly depicting child pornography.
“As Ferrick was being placed under arrest [on Feb.13], his father told investigators that the devices seized belonged to him,” the affidavit said.
Authorities obtained another warrant to search Ferrick’s Amherst apartment Feb. 21, seizing eight additional devices including the memory card with the medical exam footage.
“A complete review of the devices seized throughout the investigation is ongoing,” the affidavit said.
Ferrick’s next hearing in the state case is slated for March 29.
Travis Andersen can be reached at [email protected] .