When Josh Webb first heard about an abandoned compound in rural Alabama stuffed with old toys and medical files, he was intrigued by rumors of child abuse and unauthorized experimentation that circulated among locals.

His journey to understand what happened there took him out of the woods and into the bureaucracy that regulates doctors and group homes for the disabled. And while he hasn’t uncovered the full story of what happened in that house in Hayden, Webb said he feels like he’s getting closer to the truth.

He discovered that one of the doctors involved with the home had been investigated for misconduct that ranged from overbilling to violating patient boundaries and inappropriate prescribing. He surrendered his medical license in 2009.

“I think learning that one of the doctors who lived there had such a troubled history makes me suspicious of why they were living out in this forest to begin with,” Webb said.

Webb has released four episodes of his planned six-episode series. The first focuses on the house in Hayden. Although it is still unclear what the house was used for, when Webb initially visited, he was shocked by what he found.

The house looked like it had been abandoned without any effort to remove or secure personal items such as clothes, medication or medical files. Webb named his podcast “Why They Left.”

He still hasn’t answered that question. But along the way, his investigation focused on one psychiatrist affiliated with the home. Dr. Charles McInteer practiced in Alabama since 1998, according to the Alabama Board of Medical Examiners. He died several years ago.

McInteer had at one point been accused of overbilling Medicare and Medicaid, including one case where the doctor allegedly billed for care to a nursing home resident who had been deceased for months. In another case, he received a reprimand for “boundary violations” that required him to see patients with a chaperone present.

Webb said he found evidence that McInteer continued practicing medicine even after he lost his license at group homes operated by a family member.

On TikTok, Webb refers to the house in Hayden as The Devil’s Playground, which is a nickname used by locals familiar with the area. The location is remote, and he only gained access by meeting a man in Hayden who brought him to the isolated compound out in the woods.

“The amount of medical records and medications in the home do make me think it’s very possible that medicine was being practiced there,” Webb said. “So, I do think the kind of criminal context of these doctors makes me think if there was medicine being practiced there, there was probably something suspicious going on.”

Webb has spoken with people who worked with McInteer. In his next episode, he said he will talk with someone who worked at the compound who might be able to shed light on its purpose. So far, it’s unclear whether the home provided any kind of medical or psychiatric care.

“It will really hinge on whether that home was providing care or not,” Webb said. “If it was, I’m fairly convinced that it was not above board, and so I would classify whatever was going on as creating huge risk for creating victims.”