Fake Doctor Arrested At Hohoe

A 44-YEAR-OLD man from Aka, a village near Jasikan, who posed as a medical doctor by presenting fake certificates to the Ghana Medical and Dental Council (GMDC) for accreditation has been arrested.'Dr' Amekoudzi Yao Di-Erick has been remanded in police custody to reappear before the Hohoe Circuit Court on March 19, this year for possessing false documents, and assumption of professional title.
Dr Eli Kwasi Atikpui, the Registrar of the Ghana Medical and Dental Council, told The Mirror in an interview that the suspect went to Dr M. B. K. Ahedor, the District Director of Health Service, Hohoe, that he wanted to conduct a research with the Ghana Health Service into malaria, HIV/AIDS and Tuberculosis in the Hohoe District.
He said the suspect was directed to the Ethical Committee, Ghana Health Service, Operational Research Unit, Accra, where Professor John O. Gyapong was in charge.
The suspect then requested for approval of the research that he would conduct in the Hohoe District.
Prof. Gyapong cautioned 'Dr' Amekoudzi because he was not sure of him but the accused insisted he was a medical doctor.
 
The Professor informed Dr Atikpui about the accused and subsequent investigation showed that 'Dr' Amekoudzi had not registered with the council as prescribed by the Medical Council Decree 1972 (NRDC 91).
Dr Atikpui sent Mr Ben Ameleke, a retired Superintendent of Police currently working with GMDC, to Hohoe to investigate the matter.
He said one investigator reported the case of illegal practice and false assumption of professional title by Mr Amekoudzi to the Hohoe Divisional Police Commander, C/Supt Akpese.
According to Mr Ameleke, he called the suspect on his mobile phone that he had good news for him and this prompted the suspect to dash to Hohoe.
The investigator then accompanied the police and the suspect to Aka village, where a search in the suspect's single room, yielded some drugs and equipment in his bags and on his table and wall.
Some of the items found in the suspect's room were bottles of procaine penicillin, four vials of vitamin c, two vials of chloroquine, four vials of Gentamicin, one vial of Diazepam, 10 Tabs Cotrimozazole, 28 syringes, seven hypodermic needles, and one infusion set.
The rest were three water for injection, two pieces of cotton wool, one BP apparatus, one stethoscope, one stamp, two bottles of maracana lotion, with one being empty, two thermometers, one pair of scissors, a cutter and eight written prescriptions.
He said the suspect claimed he attended medical school for seven years in Niger but failed to produce any certificate identifying him as a medical officer.
Mr Ameleke stated that the suspect was only able to produce a testimonial dated April 3, 2003 from Lome and another document dated January 9, 2004 also from Lome recommending him for financial assistance which altogether has not qualified him as a medical officer.
He explained that 'Dr' Amekoudzi failed to produce any certificate issued from any school in the Republic of Niger where he allegedly schooled.
By Mavis Jemima Kumi