SALINAS (KRON) — A dentist was arrested in Salinas Tuesday for allegedly possessing hundreds child pornography images, a Monterey County sheriff’s spokesman said.
Dr. Gary Klugman, 65, was arrested by detectives after a month-long investigation that started with a tip, sheriff’s Cmdr. John Thornburg said.
Search warrants were served at Klugman’s office in the 900 block of Blanco Circle and his residence, Thornburg said.
Hundreds of pictures containing child pornography were found on his computers, according to Thornburg.
The evidence does not indicate Klugman’s patients were victims, Thornburg said.
Klugman’s dental license was issued in 1977 and he has a permit to perform oral and maxillofacial surgery, according to online state consumer affairs records.
He works at Blanco Circle Dental Care, which has been in business for more than 20 years, according to his profile on the practice’s website.
Klugman attended California Polytechnic State University and the University of California at Davis as an undergraduate. He obtained his dental degree from Washington University, according to his profile on the practice’s website.
He is the only dentist in Monterey County with a sedation permit, his profile says.
The state’s Dental Board appointed him to serve on the Blue Ribbon Committee on Anesthesia and he is a regional consultant for Delta Dental.
He is also a feeding show diver at the Monterey Aquarium and has served as a member with many community boards including the Monterey Peninsula Chamber of Commerce, according to his profile.
Klugman, a Salinas resident, had been married to his wife for more than 25 years and has two grown sons, according to his profile.
Calls made to Blanco Circle Dental Care went straight to voice mail.
Anyone with information on the case is asked to call sheriff’s Detective Dan Robison at (831) 755-3722.Bay City News contributed to this article.