Update, Thursday at 2:30 p.m.:
Alaska Neuro Associates released a statement Thursday regarding allegations about Russell Cherry. It reads in full:
"Alaska Neuro Associates, LLC is surprised and saddened to learn of the recent indictment of Dr. Russell Cherry on federal criminal charges. At this time, the company has no reason to believe Dr. Cherry engaged in any inappropriate behavior with clients or staff. From the limited knowledge of the circumstances of the charges, it appears the allegations involve personal activities outside of work.
Thank you to our staff, clients, referrers and business partners for their support during this difficult time. We will keep you updated if we learn any new or different information. Our office will remain closed this week, but will re-open on Monday June 25, 2018.
In the meantime, if you have any questions or specific concerns about your interactions with Dr. Cherry or Alaska Neuro Associates, please do not hesitate to email us at info@alaskaneuro.com or call us at (907) 277-0100."
Original Story:
An Anchorage neuropsychologist faces child pornography charges, federal prosecutors said Wednesday.
Russell Cherry, 51, was indicted in Anchorage on Wednesday on one count of distributing and one count of possessing child pornography. His first court hearing was Wednesday in Anchorage, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Alaska said in a written statement.
Cherry is charged with distributing child pornography between July 29 and July 31, 2017. Prosecutors say that he also possessed images and videos depicting child sexual exploitation on his desktop computer on Aug. 29, 2017.
"If the public has any further information or concerns about the activities of Cherry, please contact the FBI at (907) 276-4441," prosecutors said.
Cherry works for Alaska Neuro Associates, said Chloe Martin, spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office.
Alaska Neuro Associates is closed until June 25, according to an answering machine message at the company's office. Cherry's attorney could not immediately be reached for comment.
If convicted, Cherry faces between five and 20 years in prison.
Correction: An earlier version of this story said Cherry is a neurologist; he is a neuropsychologist.