Pedophile neurosurgeon who allegedly ran a child-sex ring with two nurses found dead in his prison cell
Former neurosurgeon and accused child molester James Kohut was found dead in his cell at the Santa Cruz County Jail on Water Street, the Santa Cruz County Coroner's Office reported Sunday. Kohut, 58, was found lying lifeless in his cell by correctional officers when breakfast service commenced at 5.45 am, KSBW reports. The former medical professional was in a protective housing unit and did not share his cell with any other inmates owing to multiple threats to his life.
Now, the Coroner's Division is working with detectives and crime scene investigators to conduct a thorough investigation into the incident and thereafter establish the official cause and manner of death.
An early assessment by forensic pathologists indicates Kohut took his own life, but this is yet to be confirmed by an autopsy scheduled for later this week.
In 2017, Kohut and two of his nurses, Emily Joy Stephens and Rashel Melina Brando, were arrested on suspicion of running a child sex ring after sex videos implicating all three were found by Watsonville police officers.
According to court documents, the videos, taken on January 1 and May 9 of 2017, show the trio raping a three-year-old and z ten-year-old multiple times.
At the time of his arrest, the neurosurgeon was working at Dominican Hospital in Santa Cruz and allegedly had affairs with Brandon, Stephens and several other mothers. According to an arrest warrant served by the Pima County Sheriff's Department at Stephens' house in Arizona, the victims were sexually abused during some of their encounters.
Prosecutors said Kohut preyed on children for nearly two decades, adding that none of the disturbing crimes took place at medical facilities. During the investigation, Brandon told authorities the doctor often spoke about past relationships with mothers and their children.
"He had told her he was molested as a young child by his nanny and her two daughters and he believed it to be a beautiful experience," Kelli Freitas, an inspector with the district attorney's office, stated in court.
In a superseding indictment filed in September last year, Kohut was charged with a staggering 48 felonies, while Stephens and Brandon were charged with 45 and 44 respectively.
That said, Kohut's license to practice was revoked by the state medical board on June 1, 2017.