Phoenix pediatrician charged in child porn case

PHOENIX - A Phoenix-area pediatrician has been arrested on charges of distributing child pornography.

Prosecutors said Thursday that 40-year-old Emilio Luna of Sun City was arrested Wednesday after authorities learned that thousands of files of suspected child pornography were shared from his computer in a public file-sharing system.

Luna's pediatric practice, Desert Valley Pediatrics, is located in Phoenix.

"It doesn't gross me out as much as it makes me angry," said Dr. Douglas Kerr, who is on the board of the medical complex where Luna worked.

Patients walking into the office were also worried by the news.

"I got kids that if something happened, they would tell," said Bob Wylie, who was taking his kids for a medical visit. "So I don't think anything happened with them."

"That's why you've got to look into everything," said Gabriel Gonzales, another parent. "Regardless if they seem real nice, you don't know what they're doing behind closed doors."

Bobby Mitchell, who is a patient at the practice, called Luna "disgusting."

"They don't ever think about the effects they put on the children," said Mitchell. "Maybe one of those kids is traumatized."

The FBI is now investigating the man who took an oath to protect children and serve their best interests, an accusation Kerr said puts the whole practice, and profession in jeopardy.

"You do want to have your child in a safe environment, and something like that may at least have people question whether or not it's safe," said Kerr.

"You have a child who, for all intensive purposes, is at your mercy," he said. "So you end up having to be more responsible."

Luna faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

It's unclear whether Luna yet has a lawyer, and his phone number in Sun City is disconnected.

U.S. Attorney Dennis Burke says protecting children from sexual exploitation is one of his office's highest priorities and that they want to "uncloak the anonymity of child predators on the Internet."

"If in fact that he did do it, then he should not be allowed to be around children again," said Wylie. "Especially putting his hands on them."

In a statement to ABC15 regarding Luna's arrest, Desert Valley Pediatrics said:

We just learned today of the allegations against Dr. Luna. Obviously, as pediatricians, we are disgusted by the allegations, which are against every belief that we as pediatricians hold dear.

Dr. Luna became an employee of our practice only very recently, in January of this year. In the short time he was employed here, there were no indications of any unusual behavior. We are committed to the safety and the well-being of our patients (children) and take our responsibilities to protect them very seriously. With that in mind, we have contacted law enforcement to offer our full cooperation with any ongoing investigation.