The paediatrician from Radboud teaching hospital in Nijmegen who was arrested earlier this month on suspicion of possessing child pornography, has been released from jail.

The public prosecution department decided to release the man because he is not under investigation for crimes which carry a minimum sentence of more than 12 years. This means he cannot be held in custody any longer.

Police have declined to give further details about the case but say there is no evidence so far the man produced child pornography himself, which would carry a long jail term. ‘Nor is there any evidence of any relationship with the children in his care at the hospital,’ the police spokesman told news agency ANP earlier.

The man, who is 39, had worked at the Radboud UMC since 2011. According to the Telegraaf, the man, who it named as Luc F, had worked at three hospitals in Britain before joining the Radboud hospital.

The paper says he comes from a distinguished Limburg family which includes high ranking members of the Catholic church among its number. His mother was a member of a Church commission set up in the wake of the sexual abuse scandal, the paper says.