EFCC says operatives were attacked with stones during visit to University of Uyo Teaching Hospital

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) says its operatives were attacked and pelted with stones while carrying out what it described as a lawful inquiry at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (UUTH) in Akwa Ibom State.

The incident, which triggered panic within the hospital on Tuesday, occurred after EFCC officers arrived in two saloon cars and a tinted bus. Some of the operatives were reportedly masked, while others wore EFCC-branded jackets.

During the operation, Professor Eyo Ekpe, a cardiothoracic surgeon and deputy chairman of the hospital’s Medical Advisory Committee, was said to have been arrested. Videos shared online showed hospital workers, patients and visitors running for safety after tear gas was reportedly discharged within the premises.

In a statement issued by the commission’s Head of Media and Publicity, Dele Oyewale, the EFCC said the visit was connected to an ongoing investigation involving a suspect accused of defrauding several microfinance banks, including the University of Uyo Microfinance Bank.

According to the commission, the suspect had presented a medical report from UUTH, prompting investigators to seek confirmation of the document’s authenticity.

The EFCC said it had written twice to the hospital management and also sent an investigating officer to make inquiries, but received no response.

“As a last resort, operatives of the commission visited the Chief Medical Director of the hospital on Tuesday to make further enquiries, only to be locked in with a false alarm and subjected to unprovoked attack by misguided staff of the facility who pelted them with stones and other dangerous objects,” the statement said.

The anti-graft agency further alleged that the Chief Medical Director ordered the hospital gates to be shut, preventing the operatives from carrying out their inquiry or leaving the premises.

The commission said the Akwa Ibom State Police Command intervened and advised the hospital management to reopen the gates, but the request was allegedly ignored.

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Despite the hostility, the EFCC said its officers exercised restraint and exited the hospital without disrupting medical activities.

The commission reminded public institutions and corporate bodies that they are legally required to cooperate with its investigations and other operational engagements.

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