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The recent departure of a Jackson General Hospital surgeon caused wide-spread rumors this week, most of which have
been denied by officials, according to the Jackson Herald in Ripley.
News tips to The Hur Herald several days ago said the physician's office had been raided by federal officials, indicating a
terrorist link. The story was an apparent fabrication.
The The Jackson Herald on-line has the full story:
Dr. Abdullah Al-Mahayri formally submitted his resignation two weeks ago to Sandra Elza, hospital CEO, on the basis of
deteriorating malpractice insurance in West Virginia and because the hospital would not purchase his practice, Elza said.
Purchasing his general surgery practice would not have been a smart financial move, she said.
After Al-Mahayri left, rumors began to spread that he was under investigation by the F.B.I. for possible involvement in
terrorist activity. Some of the rumors also stated that Al-Mahayri was wiring money to terrorist camps in the Middle East.
"That's simply not true," Elza said. "Somebody would have contacted me. There would have been people in here looking
through files and computers, but there's been nothing like that, nothing happening that I'm aware of."
Elza said Al-Mahayri approached her three months ago wanting the hospital to purchase his practice. The purchase would
have allowed him to receive a salary and relieve his need to find cheaper malpractice insurance. Because of the hospital's
financial problems, she said the buyout was not possible.
"He came to me with his resignation, I thanked him, and that was it," Few outside the hospital knew about the Al-Mahayri
decision to leave Jackson County after 10 years of service, said Dr. Hamid Moradi, a long-time friend.
When asked about the possible investigation, Moradi said, "That's not true, and everybody knows that. Everybody knew he
was leaving because of malpractice insurance. This is just another one of those stupid things."
Joe Ciccarelli, an agent at the F.B.I. office in Charleston, denied the rumors that Al-Mahayri was been investigated.
Laughingly, he said that no arrests have been made in connect to terrorism in Jackson County, though he added that it is not
F.B.I. policy to comment on investigations whether real or false.
"This thing is way out of control, and people need to be careful what they say," Elza said. "In his personal state, I believe he
made a personal decision not to practice any longer in Jackson County.
"He practiced for ten years here and had a good record. People seem to forget that," she added.
Elza did confirm that Al-Mahayri had cleaned out his office and left the state to visit family members. Efforts to contact the
surgeon were unsuccessful this week.
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