ICPC files charges against El-Rufai’s doctor over alleged forgery of medical report

The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) has filed a four-count charge against Bello Abubakar, an oncology consultant at the National Hospital, Abuja, over the alleged forgery of a medical report used to support a bail application for former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai.

The charges, filed on Friday, accuse Mr Abubakar of knowingly issuing a false medical report intended to mislead a public officer and influence Mr El-Rufai’s bail application in a separate case pending before the Kaduna State High Court.

According to the charge sheet, the report, titled “Medical Report and Expert Opinion for Urgent Medical Intervention” and dated June 10, 2026, was allegedly authored by Mr Abubakar despite knowing its contents were false. The document was subsequently presented to a Commissioner for Oaths in Kaduna State and filed in court.

In the first count, the ICPC accused Mr Abubakar of providing false information with intent to mislead a public officer, contrary to Section 17(1)(c) of the Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Act, 2000.

The second count alleges that he abused his position as a medical consultant to confer an unfair advantage by issuing the report, in violation of Section 19 of the same Act.

A third count accuses him of acting in concert with one Aliyu Bala to fabricate false information, enabling Mr Bala to depose an affidavit supporting the bail application—an offence under Section 79 of the Penal Code.

The fourth count alleges that Mr Abubakar dishonestly made a false document, presenting it as an official report of the National Hospital, Abuja, despite it allegedly lacking the institution’s authorisation, contrary to Sections 362 and 364 of the Penal Code.

Court filings indicate that the Chief Medical Director of the National Hospital, Raji Mahmud, will testify that the report was issued without conducting the required medical examination and without the hospital’s approval.

According to the filings, the hospital, in response to ICPC enquiries, stated that it had no record of Mr El-Rufai as a registered patient during the period in question. A search of its Electronic Medical Records reportedly yielded no matching data, while the report itself bore no hospital number or verifiable patient details.

The hospital management also stated that it was unaware of the report until it was presented by investigators, noting that although it appeared on official letterhead, it did not have institutional backing.

In his statement, Mr Abubakar maintained that Mr El-Rufai had been his patient since 2005 and that some consultations were not formally documented. He claimed to have conducted several consultations between 2017 and 2026, including visits during the former governor’s detention.

However, the hospital’s leadership disputed this account, stating that, to their knowledge, Mr El-Rufai was only registered as a patient on July 7, 2026.

The ICPC listed its investigator and the hospital’s Chief Medical Director among key witnesses, alongside documentary evidence including statements, hospital correspondence, and records obtained during the investigation.

Mr El-Rufai is currently facing multiple corruption-related charges filed by the ICPC, including allegations linked to an N8.68 billion CCTV contract awarded during his tenure as governor. He has denied all allegations and described the prosecutions as politically motivated.