A 37-year-old individual, allegedly posing as a medical professional with counterfeit credentials, has been apprehended by the Zone 2 Police Command in Onikan, Lagos.

The Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Olatoye Durosinmi, confirmed the arrest on Tuesday while presenting the suspect to the media in Lagos.

According to him, the suspect, who claimed to be the head of Skylink Medical Centre in Ikorodu, was taken into custody by the Zonal Anti-Piracy Unit’s operatives.

Durosinmi stated, “Based on the intelligence gathered by the command through members of the Elepe community concerning the activities of the suspect, a team of detectives, led by SP Mariam Ogunmolasuyi, swung into action.

“The officers arrested the suspect, conducted a search and recovered two suspected forged certificates of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Osun State and Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN).  Also recovered were immovable hospital equipment.”

The Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Olatoye Durosinmi, disclosed that the medical facility has been temporarily shut down pending the conclusion of an ongoing probe.

He stated that the suspect admitted to fabricating the certificates digitally and had neither earned a university degree nor obtained a certificate from the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN).

According to Durosinmi, the suspect’s highest qualification is a West African School Certificate. The suspect also confessed to having a team of six individuals, comprising two trained nurses and four untrained individuals, working with him.

He further stated, “According to him, he worked as a Nursing Assistant at Fabo Medical Centre in the Majidun area of Lagos before establishing his own hospital.”

The Assistant Inspector-General of Police, Olatoye Durosinmi, revealed that the suspect claimed to have performed three surgeries – two cesarean sections and an appendectomy – during his three-year tenure of illegal medical practice.

According to Durosinmi, the investigation has exposed the suspect’s lack of qualifications to operate a hospital. He urged the public to report any suspicious activities, particularly in the medical field, to the authorities without hesitation.

Durosinmi assured that the command is collaborating with the health ministries in Lagos and Ogun States to eliminate fraudulent individuals posing as medical professionals.

The suspected fake doctor, speaking to journalists, admitted to performing general treatments and surgeries, claiming he received training from someone for two and a half years before establishing his hospital.

“I am just a secondary school certificate holder but I forged the MBBS certificate,” the suspect confessed.