A 38-year-old fake medical doctor who not only treated patients but also performed surgical operations has been arrested by the operatives of the Zone 2 Police Command, Onikan, Lagos State.
The suspect, a father of three children named Shakirudeen Tayo, was paraded before newsmen on Tuesday by the Assistant Inspector General of Police in charge of Zone 2, Olatoye Durosinmi.
The police boss warned members of the public to be cautious of the health professionals they entrust with their lives and to report any suspicious medical practitioners to the police.
Additionally, the police boss told newsmen that preliminary investigations revealed that the suspect performed three surgical operations on different patients.
AIG Durosinmi stated that the arrest of the suspect was the result of intelligence gathered from the residents of Elepe community in the Ikorodu area of Lagos State.
According to the Zone 2 police boss, the suspect was, until his arrest, the Managing Director of Skylink Medical Centre, situated at Ako-Okuta Block Industry behind Uncle Bayus Schools, Elepe-Ikorodu, Lagos.
The police boss said, “A team of detectives led by the officer in charge of Zonal Anti-Piracy Zone 2 Command, SP Mariam Ogunmolasuyi, swung into action, arrested the suspect, conducted a search, and recovered two suspected forged certificates of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State, and the Nigeria Medical and Dental Council.”
The police boss also stated that “also recovered were immovable hospital equipment.”
“In the meantime, the hospital complex has been sealed pending the outcome of the investigation.”
The suspect confessed to not having received any formal education as a trained medical practitioner and that he stopped his education at the secondary school level.
He also claimed to have performed “just one surgical operation since he started the medical centre about three years ago.”
Shakirudeen’s confession also revealed that he has a total of six staff, two of whom are trained nurses and four are amateurs.
According to him, he worked as a nursing assistant at Fabo Medical Centre in the Majidun area of Lagos before establishing his own hospital.
He stated that he successfully carried out three surgeries (two caesarean sections and one appendectomy) during his three years of unlawful practice as a medical practitioner, while an investigation so far revealed that he has been operating the hospital without a qualified/certified medical practitioner.
The AIG therefore urges members of the public not to hesitate in giving information to the police whenever they suspect any unlawful practice of any kind.
The suspect, while speaking with newsmen, said, “I am Shakirudeen Wasiu Tayo. I am 38 years old and from Ogun State.”
He confessed that “I have been practicing for about three years now. I own my own hospital called Skyline Medical Centre, located at Ijaiye in the Ikorodu area of Lagos State.”
“In my hospital, I treat general conditions such as malaria, typhoid, and infections. I also perform surgeries, but I specialise in appendectomy alone,” the suspect stated.
He insinuated that “I have only operated on one person. I have worked as a nursing assistant at Jones Hospital in Ojokoro.”
He also confessed that “the medicine and surgery certificate I am using was forged from Obafemi Awolowo University. Since I started, nobody has died in my medical centre. My operations are successful.”
“I am an SSCE holder. Nobody taught me how to operate; I learned it from my former boss. I was always with him whenever he wanted to perform surgery.”
On how he performed the surgical operation, the suspect said, “We first check vital signs, perform an abdominal scan, and then check PVC. We prepare the patient for surgery, conduct the surgery, clean the area, apply Dettol, and stitch the opening back.”
He continued, “We continue with the patient’s treatment until they are completely healed and discharged from our hospital.”
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