The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) on Friday re-arraigned a cosmetic surgeon, Dr. Anuoluwapo Adepoju, for allegedly obstructing investigation into complaints of failed surgeries.
Adepoju was arraigned alongside her firm Med Contour Services Ltd, before Justice Mohammed Liman of the Federal High Court, Lagos.
The re-arraignment followed the amendment of a five-count charge marked FHC/L/125c/2020, filed against her by the FCCPC.
Adepoju, popularly know as ‘Dr Anu’, and her firm was first arraigned on similar charges on July 4.
She pleaded not guilty.
The case was adjourned till July 9 for the commencement of trial.
However, following the judge’s absence further hearing was adjourned till yesterday.
At the commencement of proceedings, Prosecution counsel Mr Babatunde Irukera, who is the Director-General of FCCPC, informed Justice Liman of the amended charge and applied that the defendant be made to retake her plea.
When the judge granted his prayer, the amended five-count charge was read to the defendant.
The charge accused the defendant of failure “or refusal to appear before the FCCPC in compliance with a summons as required by law.
“Failure to produce documents in compliance with the Commission’s Notice of Investigation as required by law” and “Impeding, preventing or obstructing the Commission’s investigation.”
The FCCPC said the offences occurred between April 15 and May 4, 2020, at No. 72a Ladi Alakija Street, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos and other locations.
It alleged further that Adepoju’s conduct contravened sections 33(3)(a) and 113(4)(a) of the FCCPC Act 2018 and was liable to be punished under sections 33(3) and 113(1) of the same Act, among others.
Adepoju repeated her not guilty plea.
Following the judges approval, Irukera opened the prosecution’s case by calling its first witness, Mrs Suzzy Onwuka.
Onwuka, an FCCPC staff, said sometime in March and April this year, the commission received complaints from people who reportedly suffered adversely from the activities of the defendants.
The complainants alleged that the defendants made false advertisements about their work.
When the FCCPC began investigating the claims, it could not locate the defendants’ place of business at its advertised address.
The said address, she said, was false.
The FCCPC found MedContour at another address, following which it wrote to the surgeon, notifying her of the investigation and requested that she should provide documents to the commission.
The notice of investigation, Onwuka testified, was issued on April 14 but Dr Adepoju failed to comply. Hence, the notice was pasted on MedContour’s premises.
The commission also pasted a summons to the defendant on the same address, requesting that she should come to the commission but she failed to comply.
Documents tendered and accepted by Irukera included a statement issued by the FCCPC on the said investigation, photographs, a letter by the Nigerian Medical Association to the FCCPC found on the defendant’s Instagram account, various letters and emails to the FCCPC, as well as three bundles of complaint questionnaires. The case was adjourned till October 14 for continuation of trial
The FCCPC had in April, sealed the second defendant (Med Contour), a plastic surgery hospital, over suspicion of illegal activities.
In the same month, FCCPC also revealed on its official Twitter handle that it had commenced an investigation into a case of failed plastic surgery performed by the cosmetic surgeon.
The FCCPC is investigating allegations that the surgeon’s services resulted in the death of one Mrs Nneka Onwuzuligbo, among other complaints.