A Bangladeshi academic serving as an assistant professor at the University of South Florida has been arrested in Hillsborough County on charges related to the filming, distribution, or possession of images and videos depicting sexual activity with an animal.
Raiyan Abdul Baten (also referred to in some reports as Ryan Abdul Baten), born November 1, 1993, was booked into custody on October 28, 2026.
According to arrest and booking information circulated on U mugshot and crime-news platforms, including Tampa Busts-style databases and America’s Top Mugshot, he faces the charge of “Film, Distribute, or Possess Image or Video of Sexual Activity with an Animal.”
Some Bangladeshi media reports specifically identify the animal as a goat. A Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office mugshot has circulated online alongside the booking details.
Baten is an assistant professor in the Bellini College of Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, and Computing at the University of South Florida in Tampa, where he directs the Computational Social Science and AI Lab. His research focuses on affective computing, human-AI interaction, computational social science, network science, creativity, and soft-skill development.
He maintains a personal academic website at raiyan-ab.com and has published in venues including CHI, PNAS Nexus, and Scientific Reports. He joined USF as a tenure-track faculty member in Fall 2023 after completing a postdoctoral appointment.
He earned his BSc in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology (BUET). He later completed his MS and PhD (2022) at the University of Rochester, where his doctoral work on creative performances in social networks received recognition from the Association for the Advancement of Affective Computing.
Some Bangladeshi outlets have additionally reported claims from former classmates that Baten was involved with Islami Chhatra Shibir (the student wing of Jamaat-e-Islami) during his time at BUET, and have alleged that he and his wife support Jamaat-e-Islami politics. One such report names his wife as Fatima Tuz Zohora.
As of early November 2026, no detailed official statement from the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office or the University of South Florida regarding the case, bond status, or court proceedings had been widely published.