Psychiatrist from township charged with sexual contact

by Davy James, Staff Writer
   A local psychiatrist has been charged with criminal sexual contact after he allegedly touched one of his patients inappropriately in his Edison office.
   Chowdhury Azam, 54, of Monmouth Junction, was charged Oct. 17, according to the Middlesex County prosecutor’s office.
   Mr. Azam, a licensed psychiatrist at Compass Behavioral Health on Pierson Avenue in Edison, was arrested after one of his patients filed a report Oct. 17 with Edison police, the same day Mr. Azam was arrested.
   A joint investigation involving the Middlesex County prosecutor’s office Sex Crime/Child Abuse Unit and the Edison Police Department revealed that Mr. Azam allegedly touched one of his patients on one occasion, according to the prosecutor’s office.
   The prosecutor has notified the New Jersey State Board of Medical Examiners concerning Mr. Azam’s arrest.
   Probable cause for issuance of the complaint was the statement of the victim, according to the prosecutor’s office. Mr. Azam was released on $50,000 bail. If convicted, he faces a term of up to 18 months in jail.
   Police are asking anyone with information on Mr. Azam to contact Investigator Raj Chopra at the prosecutor’s office at (732) 745-3600, or Detective Michael Michalski of the Edison Police Department at (732) 248-7525.