Essex GP struck off for bribing sexual assault accuser

A GP from Essex has been permanently removed from the medical register following his imprisonment for attempting to obstruct justice.

Dr Mukhtar Hussain received a 14-month jail sentence earlier this year after he attempted to pay a patient £5,000 to drop allegations that he had sexually assaulted her, according to a tribunal.

The Asian, who trained in Pakistan and practised as a GP in the Chelmsford area for nearly two decades, faced trial and was cleared of sexual assault by a jury.

However, on March 2, 2023, he pleaded guilty to an act intended to obstruct the course of justice and received his sentence on February 5 this year.

A Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service (MPTS) misconduct hearing in November heard that between March and November 2020, Dr Hussain had visited the complainant, known as "Patient A", at her home multiple times for medical examinations.

Police began investigating in January 2021 after Patient A alleged Dr Hussain had sexually assaulted her during home visits. The woman said she lived "in fear" of the doctor and switched GP surgeries.

While Dr Hussain denied sexual assault and was found not guilty at trial, he went to the woman's home on April 12, 2021 before the trial and "begged her" to speak with him.

The misconduct hearing heard Dr Hussain told the woman not to contact police and that they should "sort out the issues between [themselves]".

He then produced an envelope with £5,000 in cash and a USB stick containing an email he had written for her to send to police, describing the matter as a "misunderstanding" and withdrawing the allegations.

In his sentencing comments, Judge Richard Wilkin said Dr Hussain had attempted to get the patient's case dismissed "by seeking both to emotionally manipulate her in what [he] discussed with her, including about her religion" and "pay her off".

The woman was left "freaking out, shaking, scared and on edge" following the visit, the misconduct hearing was told.

After admitting the charge in 2023, Dr Hussain was sentenced at Chelmsford Crown Court by Judge Wilkin on February 5 this year to 14 months in prison.

Rachel Jones, chair of Dr Hussain's misconduct panel, determined that he represented a "high" continuing risk to the public if he remained a GP.

Jones said the GP had demonstrated "limited" understanding of his actions, and as Judge Wilkin noted during sentencing, the doctor's attitude was one of "downplaying your offending" and that he was sorry to be caught, "but nothing more than that".

The panel determined that Dr Hussain's immediate removal from the medical register was required "to properly protect public confidence" in medicine.