The Nigerian Medical Association’s branch in Anambra State has called for the arrest and prosecution of Corporal Okona Ifeanyi of the Criminal Investigation Department in Nnewi. It alleges that Ifeanyi kidnapped and assaulted Dr. Ofodile Ekweogwu, a consultant neurosurgeon, one of its members.
The state chairman of the Anambra NMA, Dr. Ezeonu Jane of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Medical Centre, Awka, made the demand in a statement dated March 17, 2024, following an emergency state executive council meeting that same day in response to the tragedy.
According to the physicians’ testimony, Corporal Okona was treated for a brain injury he had incurred in a car accident and was admitted to a private medical facility in January 2024.
According to the medical staff, the corporal lost consciousness repeatedly. He was then sent to the Eastern Specialist Hospital in Nnewi, where he received neurosurgical treatment from Dr. Ekweogwu. Following this, the patient made a full recovery and was eventually allowed to go home.
They claimed that after receiving his medical bill, the officer escaped the hospital by climbing the perimeter fence. However, he eventually paid some of the expenses back and was given permission to go on self-recognition to pay the remaining amount.
Related News
Former Anambra Governor Tasks Soludo on Conduct Of Government Officials
Uproar Over Continued Detention Of Teenagers One Month After Arrest In Anambra
However, the doctors claimed that the officer used coercive tactics to avoid paying the outstanding bill, showing up to the Area Command in Nnewi in February 2024 with armed police officers and calling Dr. Ekweogwu in without a formal invitation.
They also stated that the corporal received a warning from the area commander to settle his unpaid medical bills.
The doctors denounced the officer and his associates in their resolution, citing instances of “kidnap, torture, and attempted extortion, medical assault, and threat to the life of our member.”
They therefore called for “the immediate arrest, suspension, speedy investigation, trial and appropriate sanctioning of the culprit and his collaborator policemen who carried out this dastardly act, who has brought grave disrepute to the image of the Nigeria Police Force.”
