Abuja private hospital, Wellington Clinics, has suspended all renal transplant-related services following allegations of transactional organ harvesting involving a kidney donor, while denying any involvement in the alleged financial dealings or organ trafficking.
The hospital said the donor nephrectomy was conducted at its facility under the supervision of a licensed senior consultant nephrologist and that it was cooperating with relevant authorities investigating the circumstances surrounding the transplant.
In a statement signed by its Director of Administration, Yemi Olatunbosun, and made available to journalists on Tuesday, the clinic said its role in the procedure was limited to providing an equipped theatre and medical environment under a pre-agreed facility rental arrangement.
According to the statement, the donor, identified in the hospital’s records as Abubakar Hassan, was admitted on April 24, 2026, as a scheduled kidney donor and underwent a left donor nephrectomy the same day.
The procedure was performed by a team led by Dr Benjamin Friday Oyimeh, a Senior Consultant Nephrologist and Chief Executive Officer of Crown Medical and Kidney Centre.
Olatunbosun said the specialist team was responsible for patient recruitment, clinical evaluation, donor-recipient compatibility assessment, informed consent, ethical screening and other clinical and medico-legal responsibilities.
He said the team was also responsible for ensuring compliance with the National Health Act 2014 and guidelines of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria.
The clinic said the donor presented several documents on admission, including a court affidavit, digital National Identification Number slip, birth certificate issued by the National Population Commission, affidavit of consent and statutory declaration of age.
He was also accompanied by a man identified as Abubakar Isa, whom he presented as his brother, the statement said.
The hospital said its records showed that the donor was admitted as Abubakar Hassan, with a date of birth of February 4, 2000, and hospital number WCA/8066/2026.
It said he was discharged on April 28, four days after the operation, and was subsequently readmitted on July 11 for wound management and removal of residual stitches before being discharged on July 13.
According to Wellington, the donor had explained that he had travelled and was therefore unable to attend some earlier scheduled follow-up appointments.
The clinic said the kidney removed from the donor was immediately transplanted into a patient suffering from end-stage kidney failure.
It stressed that neither the donor nor recipient died as a result of the procedure.
Wellington Clinics strongly denied participating in, facilitating, negotiating or benefiting from any financial transaction connected with the transplant.
‘Wellington Clinics did not participate, facilitate, negotiate, or benefit from any transactional arrangements,’ the statement said.
The hospital explained that it relied on the documents and declarations presented by the donor and the specialist medical team, adding that it had no independent means or legal duty to conduct forensic investigations into the relationship between a donor and recipient beyond the identification documents and declarations submitted.
It said there was no indication at the time of admission that the documents were false or that the donor had misrepresented his identity.
‘Since the records department of Wellington relied on the above documents submitted on admission, as per the current level of practice, we were not aware or suspicious of any misrepresentation or manipulation of identity at the time,’ the clinic stated.
The hospital further said it was unaware of any financial or other transactional relationship between the nephrology team, the donor or any other person connected with the case.
It said the donor was recorded simply as a consenting adult donor.
The clinic also clarified that reports suggesting the donor’s identity had been concealed or altered were matters for the ongoing investigation, noting that the Nigeria Police Force was investigating the case.
Following the emergence of the allegations, Wellington said it had suspended all renal transplant-related services pending the outcome of the investigations.
The hospital reaffirmed its commitment to ethical and evidence-based healthcare, saying it would continue to cooperate fully with investigative and regulatory authorities and abide by the outcome of the probe.
It said its model of practice allows specialist teams to provide highly specialised medical services while retaining responsibility and accountability for their clinical and ethical decisions.
Wellington urged the relevant authorities to consider its medical records and documents submitted during the transplant as part of the investigation, saying they could help clarify the facility’s role in the case.
The controversy comes amid growing concerns over alleged unethical practices in organ transplantation and calls for stronger safeguards to protect donors and recipients.