EFCC operatives assaulted hospital workers, dragged me into van — UUTH doctor

A Professor of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, Prof. Eyo Ekpe, has accused operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission of harassing and assaulting him and other hospital workers during an attempt to arrest him over an alleged fake medical report.

Ekpe, who is also the Deputy Chairman of the Medical Advisory Committee of the hospital, made the allegation during a press conference on Wednesday while narrating the events that led to the confrontation between the EFCC operatives and hospital staff.

Videos seen by PUNCH Metro on Thursday on X showed the professor insisting that the medical report the EFCC came to verify was fake and did not originate from the hospital.

According to Ekpe, he had just resumed work on Monday after receiving official approval to travel outside Akwa Ibom State when he was assigned to handle the EFCC’s request alongside his routine responsibilities.

“I added the responsibility of handling the medical report to my clinical duties, supervision of resident doctors and teaching medical students,” he said.

Ekpe explained that because the diagnosis contained in the report fell under the Internal Medicine Department, he invited the Head of Department to examine the document.

“The head of the department discovered that the doctor whose name appeared on the report was not a staff member of the department,” he said.

He added that after further checks, he prepared a draft response to the EFCC on May 11, 2026, confirming that the report was not genuine.

According to him, EFCC operatives visited his office the following day to collect the response, but he informed them that the document still required approval from the Chief Medical Director before it could be officially signed and stamped.

“I showed him the draft and explained that it still had to be presented to the Chief Medical Director before it could be released officially,” he said.

Ekpe alleged that shortly after the operatives left his office, they returned with another armed officer and informed him that he was under arrest.

“I told them I did not issue the report, my name was not on it, and it did not come from my unit. But they asked me to explain that at their office,” he said.

The professor further alleged that the operatives refused to allow him to wait for a staff member he had sent on an errand before they began dragging him out of his office.

“They dragged me to the walkway, and I started crying. Staff members who heard me rushed out,” he alleged.

He also claimed that the operatives prevented him from speaking with colleagues or answering phone calls while armed officers surrounded him.

“They said I must not talk to anyone. They held guns behind and in front of me while dragging me,” he alleged.

Ekpe said hospital workers resisted the arrest, prompting the operatives to call for reinforcement.

“Not long after, masked and armed men arrived. They threatened people around, and everyone started running,” he said.

He alleged that some hospital workers were beaten before he and others were dragged into an EFCC van.

“We were emotionally traumatised. Tear gas was fired, and live bullets were shot,” he added.

Also speaking, the Chief Medical Director of the hospital, Prof. Ememabasi Bassey, confirmed that Ekpe and four other workers were arrested without prior notice to the hospital management.

Bassey maintained that the medical report in question was fake and suggested that some insiders within the hospital might have collaborated with outsiders to produce it.

“One of the things we must get to the bottom of is how the lawyer handling the case got the fake medical report. It is possible there are bad eggs within the hospital working with outsiders,” he said.

The CMD explained that the hospital attends to between 600 and 800 patients daily and could not afford a prolonged shutdown resulting from the incident.

He also noted that the letterhead used for the report was outdated and did not originate from the hospital.

“We have seen many fake medical reports supposedly issued by this hospital. The letterhead used was an old one and did not come from any official source within the hospital,” he said.

Bassey denied claims that the hospital ignored earlier EFCC correspondence, stating that the only letter received by his office was dated April 21, 2026.

He explained that the verification process was delayed by weekends, a public holiday and Ekpe’s officially approved trip to participate in national postgraduate medical examinations.

According to him, Ekpe returned on May 11 and completed a draft authentication report the same day, confirming that the document was fake.

Bassey criticised the conduct of the operatives, saying they went directly to Ekpe’s office without notifying management or presenting an arrest warrant.

“At no point did they come to look for the CMD, the CMAC or the Director of Administration. They simply went to his office,” he said.

The CMD said the situation escalated after the operatives allegedly returned with armed and hooded reinforcements, causing panic among hospital workers.

“His staff ran out because they saw hooded men invade the office,” he said.

Bassey said he immediately contacted the Akwa Ibom State Commissioner of Police, Baba Azare, after receiving distress calls and was advised to secure the hospital gates until police officers arrived.

He added that although the police later confirmed the men were EFCC operatives and advised that the gates be opened, tear gas had already been fired and the confrontation had escalated.

The CMD also disclosed that several hospital workers sustained injuries during the incident, including one staff member who reportedly suffered a head injury.

Eyewitnesses, however, claimed the operatives later called for reinforcement and fired shots into the air to disperse workers gathered at the scene.

Reacting to the incident in a statement on Tuesday, the EFCC said its operatives visited the hospital to verify a medical report submitted by a suspect standing trial and claimed the commission had earlier written two letters to the hospital.

“As a last resort, operatives of the commission visited the chief medical director of the hospital on Tuesday to make further inquiries, only to be locked in and attacked by misguided staff of the facility,” the agency stated.

The commission also accused the hospital management of refusing to open the gates despite police intervention.

“Police authorities advised the CMD to open the gates to enable the operatives to exit peacefully, but the request was ignored,” the statement added.

The EFCC maintained that its operatives acted professionally and did not disrupt hospital activities.