India-born surgeon Jayant Patel dubbed as 'Doctor Death' could face up to 28 charges, including manslaughter, assault and fraud in Australia.
The Queensland Director of Public Prosecutions' statement said charges against Patel, who fled Australia for the US after being implicated in a string of patient deaths at the Bundaberg hospital on the Queensland coast, will be laid on Wednesday.
Queensland police have recommended that Patel face at least 28 charges, including manslaughter, assault and fraud, a media report said. Director of Public Prosecutions Leanne Clare said she will not detail the charges until arrest warrants were issued for Patel's extradition.
Clare, while warning that media attention could not to jeopardise the case, said: 'This is a significant case, which had attracted a great deal of community interest and national and international media interest. It is important to realise that while the laying of charges is significant, the matter is still subject to significant legal processes in Australia and the United States,' she told The Age newspaper.
If a warrant is obtained for Patel's arrest, the Director of Public Prosecutions will forward an extradition request to the commonwealth attorney-general, a media report said. The DPP told ABC network that criminal charges are being pursued against Patel and if the application is granted, authorities will seek his extradition from the US.
Patel fled Australia in April last year after allegations of medical incompetence surfaced following his two years as director of surgery at the hospital. Two inquiries have linked him to 17 patient deaths at the facility. News of the charges come just months after Queensland Premier Peter Beattie revealed he had turned down an offer from Patel in June to conditionally return to Australia to face charges.
