A Bozeman anesthesiologist with ties to medical centers in the region died by suicide late last month, shortly after being charged with felony sexual abuse of children, county officials say.

According to the Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office, Jeffrey Scheihing was arrested Nov. 25 and, according to the coroner, was pronounced dead on Nov. 27 while in custody at the Gallatin County Detention Center.

“There’s not a lot we can share at this point because it is still a matter under investigation,” Undersheriff Nate Kamerman told the Chronicle. “Anytime that we have an in-custody incident such as this, we end up bringing in another agency.”

According to Kamerman, the investigation into Scheihing’s death is being run by the Montana Department of Justice, Division of Criminal Investigations.

According to court documents, Scheihing first came under investigation in October after Kik Messenger, an online messaging app, issued a CyberTip to the Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force, alerting law enforcement that an account had allegedly uploaded child sexual abuse material.

Investigators later determined Scheihing maintained several accounts, which he allegedly used to share photos and videos of juvenile boys throughout last fall, and that earlier this year he also engaged in sexually explicit conversations with multiple users.

Officers were able to link Scheihing to the accounts using his phone number and email address associated with the profiles.

Scheihing was a member of Gallatin Valley Anesthesia Associates, an independent physician-only anesthesia practice that contracts with clinics and hospitals across the county, including Bozeman Health Deaconess Regional Medical Center where he had privileges since 2019 but was not considered an employee.

Scheihing is also listed online as practicing at The Orthopedic Surgical Center of Montana, an outpatient and same-day orthopedic surgical center. The Surgical Center told the Chronicle it would not comment at this time.

Gallatin Valley Anesthesia Associates did not respond to a request for comment.

Bozeman Health provided the Chronicle with the following statement:

“We are aware that a local medical provider with privileges at facilities across the region, including at our hospital, was arrested outside of work on charges unrelated to our facility. We had no prior knowledge of the investigation and were not contacted by law enforcement during their investigation. We have no information suggesting any concerns related to the individual’s work within our facilities.”

A source familiar with the matter said all privileged medical providers at Bozeman Health receive background checks every two years. After learning of Scheihing’s arrest, the nonprofit reviewed his background materials and found no patient complaints, no staff concerns and a clean record.

Additionally, the source said that it would be extremely rare for a minor to be left unaccompanied with an anesthesiologist at Bozeman Health, as anesthesiologists work in teams alongside other doctors and nurses during procedures. Parents and guardians are also permitted to accompany minors into operating rooms, further limiting the likelihood that a patient would ever be alone.

As the investigation into Scheihing’s death continues, Kamerman offered condolences to those impacted.

“Despite the circumstance, our hearts do go out to the family and co-workers and surrounding community in every situation like this because it’s not an easy thing,” he said. “It’s a nasty thing, it’s a heavy thing, and somebody lost their life and that is still somebody’s family member.”