Doctor From Palo Alto Accused Of Multiple Sexual Assault Incidents

PALO ALTO, CA — A doctor from Palo Alto faces five sexual assault charges in incidents dating back as far as 2007, according to the Palo Alto Police Department.

Naeem Ulislam Hashmi, 61, was arrested last December on suspicion of committing lewd acts on children. Hashmi, who works at Crescent Medical Center in San Jose, was the subject of an investigation by the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office that began in August 2021 after a woman claimed that she had been sexually assaulted by Hashmi in 2007 – when she was 12 and 13 years old.

Hashmi was also suspected of sexually assaulting a friend of the first victim around the same time, according to police.

Following his arrest, detectives said they located a third victim from 2016, an employee of Hashmi who claimed she was sexually assaulted while they were both working in Hashmi’s medical office.

Police said the underage victims were not Hashmi's patients, but instead people he knew through community and family connections.

Palo Alto police believe there may be additional victims.

Hashmi’s criminal case is in progress at Santa Clara County Superior Court.