Alex Enumah in Abuja
The federal government has filed a fresh charge against an Abuja-based fertility doctor and pastor, John Abebe, over allegations bordering on fraud, unlawful disclosure of confidential medical records, and the alleged sale of a couple’s embryos.
Dr Abebe was charged alongside a firm, Joje Abebe Fertility Centre Limited and Balkis Olanike Bakare.
The fresh charge was filed at the registry of the High Court of the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, by the office of the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF),.
Abebe was in the charge number CR)/005/2026, accused of unlawfully disclosing the confidential medical records of Mr. and Mrs. Mary Manga without their consent.
Initially, the office of the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) was prosecuting the case but the AGF sought the transfer of the case to his office and filed a fresh charge against him.
Abebe and his clinic were arraigned on a three-count charge bordering on criminal conspiracy, fraud, unlawful disclosure of confidential medical records, and the alleged sale of nine embryos belonging to a couple. The embryos are said to comprise of two male and seven female.
According to the charge, the prosecution alleged that Dr. Abebe unlawfully disclosed the confidential medical records of Mrs. Mary Manga and her husband without their consent, contrary to Section 29 of the National Health Act, 2014.
The federal government further alleged that between January and May 2025, Dr. Abebe, described as a Chief Consultant Obstetrician and Gynecologist, obtained N19 million from the couple under the pretext of providing specialist In Vitro Fertilisation (IVF) services. Prosecutors claimed he converted the money to his personal use, an offence punishable under Section 1 of the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006.
The prosecution also alleged that the doctor sold the couple’s fully developed embryos to other patients, an allegation that, if proven, would rank among the most serious fertility-related scandals in Nigeria’s recent history.
In the first count, the prosecution alleged that Dr. Abebe and Joje Abebe Hospital Limited unlawfully disclosed the confidential medical records of Mr. and Mrs. Mary Manga without their consent, thereby violating their right to medical confidentiality contrary to the provisions of the National Health Act, 2014.
The second count alleged that Dr. Abebe breached a confidentiality agreement relating to the reproductive health status of Mrs. Manga’s husband by attaching confidential medical records to a pre-action demand notice issued through his lawyers. The prosecution claimed the documents became accessible to third parties, causing emotional trauma to the complainants.
In the third count, prosecutors alleged that between January and May 2025, Dr. Abebe fraudulently obtained N19 million from the complainants by falsely representing himself as an IVF specialist. The prosecution further alleged that he converted both the money and some of the couple’s embryos to his personal use, contrary to the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act, 2006.
The matter is currently before Justice A. A. Fashola of the FCT High Court, Abuja which granted the defedant bail on March 11, 2026. The trial is expected to address significant questions relating to medical ethics, patient confidentiality, fertility treatment practices, and the enforcement of health and fraud laws in Nigeria.