WEST COLUMBIA — A patient was puzzled why her doctor abruptly left his West Columbia clinic last year. So she started an online discussion, generating dozens of reactions from similarly perplexed patients of Dr. Fernando Xavier Castro.

The April 2024 post on the Reddit social network elicited a range of theories about what led him to vanish from Lexington Rheumatology , with someone even sharing a rumor that he had been kidnapped while traveling overseas.

“I pray he's okay,” one person wrote. “He was such an awesome doctor ❤️”

But government and court records portray Castro in a far different light, one that’s tied to his departure from the medical facility. Download PDF

Two Midlands women allege he sexually assaulted them under the guise of conducting a therapeutic massage — enc

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