Second Detroit doctor, wife charged in female genital mutilation case

DETROIT -- (WXYZ) -- Federal prosecutors have arrested and charged another doctor and his wife in connection to the female genital mutilation of young girls.

Dr. Fakhruddin Attar, 53, and his wife Farida Attar, 50, are accused of Conspiracy to Commit Female Genital Mutilation and Aiding and Abetting Female Genital Mutilation. The two were arrested Friday morning and will be in in federal court at 1 p.m.

The illegal procedures allegedly took place at Dr. Fakhruddin Attar's Livonia clinic, which was raided Friday morning.

The charges were announced after a Henry Ford Hospital emergency room doctor was arrested and charged in connection to performing the illegal practice. Dr. Attar and his wife are accused of conspiring with Dr. Jumana Nagarwala, 44, of Northville. Nagarwala was arrested on April 12.

According to the latest criminal complaint, Dr. Attar, his wife and Dr. Nagarwala conspired to perform the procedure on girls ages six to eight years old at a medical clinic in Livonia.

Some of the children were brought from out of state for the illegal procedure. Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) is considered the complete removal or partial removal of the clitoris, known as a clitoridectomy. FGM is internationally recognized as a violation of the human rights of women and girls.

Some consider FGM as a religious and cultural practice. The purpose of this illegal practice is to suppress female sexuality in order to reduce sexual pleasure.

In the criminal affidavit, Nagarwala performed FGM on girls who were approximately 7 years old at the time at a clinic in Livonia.