Moroccan ’Surgeon of the Poor’ Faces New Medical Negligence Complaints

A few days after his arrest, new complaints have been filed against El Hassan Tazi, who has never ceased to proclaim his innocence, according to the Arabic-language newspaper Al Ahdath Al Maghribia. Most of the plaintiffs are women who claim to have suffered from medical negligence from the one nicknamed "the surgeon of the poor" and his collaborators. Although they had received donations to undergo cosmetic surgery operations, they did not meet the expectations of the patients. The plaintiffs intend to join the civil party in the ongoing trial.

On the order of the investigating judge of the Casablanca Court of Appeal, Dr. El Hassane Tazi himself, his wife, his brother, two other employees of his private clinic had been placed in pre-trial detention in the Oukacha prison for several offenses. These five people are being prosecuted under arrest for human trafficking, exploitation of the vulnerability of people for commercial purposes, fraud against benefactors acting in good faith, exploitation of minors suffering from illness, diversion of donations to the detriment of victims, falsification of treatment invoices and medical records and money laundering and usurpation of function. As for the three other people arrested in this case, they are being prosecuted while at liberty.