GP who tried to kill man dangerous, tribunal told

Thomas Kwan was jailed for more than 31 years after admitting attempted murder

A disguise-wearing GP who tried to kill his mother's partner with a poison in an inheritance row poses a danger to patients and the public, a professional tribunal has heard.

Thomas Kwan, 54, claimed to be a community nurse giving a coronavirus booster jab when he injected Patrick O'Hara with a pesticide at the victim's home in Newcastle in January 2024, a medical practitioners tribunal heard.

The tribunal was told Kwan, who lived in Ingleby Barwick and worked in Sunderland, was jailed in November for 31 years and five months after admitting attempted murder.

Kwan claimed his actions were unrelated to his "unblemished" career, but the General Medical Council (GMC) said he could harm others.

The tribunal was held online with Kwan attending via telephone from HMP Frankland.

It will first consider whether Kwan's ability to work as a doctor considered to be "impaired" before then moving to look at sanctions if he is found unfit to practise medicine.

Thomas Kwan disguised himself with a face mask when he went to his mother's home to inject her partner

Alex Mullen, counsel for the GMC, told the tribunal Kwan qualified from the University of Newcastle in 1996 and had been working as a GP since 2001.

He said Kwan's motive to kill Mr O'Hara at the victim's home on 22 January 2024 "appears to have been an inheritance issue".

Kwan felt aggrieved by his mother's decision to grant a life interest in her Newcastle home to Mr O'Hara, meaning if she died her children would not inherit the St Thomas' Street house until after her partner's death, Mr Mullen said.

Citing the remarks of the judge who sentenced Kwan in November, Mr Mullen said the GP sought to "remove the obstacle that lay in the way of his inheritance" which meant murdering Mr O'Hara.

Mr Mullen said the GP

• was "obsessed" with poisons and their effects on humans

• amassed various toxins and ingredients to make ricin, a "scheduled chemical weapon"

• set up a shell company based at his work place, Happy House Surgery, to order chemicals through but lied to colleagues it was to manage properties

• collected various books and manuals on poisons and police guidance document on murder investigations

• sent his victim fake but very real-looking NHS letters to set up an appointment to visit for a fictional health check and Covid-19 booster jab

• sent Mr O'Hara text messages to remind him of the impending visit

• scouted out then booked into a hotel near the victim's home using false details the night before the attack, having put false number plates on his car to drive to Newcastle

• disguised himself with a surgical mask, cap long coat and blue medical gloves and spoke with a fake accent when he visited Mr O'Hara

Thomas Kwan sent his victim a fake letter to set up a home visit on 22 January

Kwan's plan culminated with him injecting Mr O'Hara with a toxin under the guise of giving a booster jab, the tribunal heard.

The injection caused "immediate severe pain", which Kwan claimed was an allergic reaction before making a hasty exit, the tribunal heard.

The substance was actually iodomethane, a fumigant pesticide which caused burns and blisters to the skin and was "highly toxic" if inhaled or absorbed, Mr Mullen said.

He said there was very little documented about its effects on humans which made it "particularly dangerous" as the doctors treating Mr O'Hara would not have immediately known how to combat the toxin.

Mr O'Hara spent five days in intensive care and had to undergo multiple operations to remove dead flesh from his arm followed by reconstructive surgery, the tribunal heard.

'Shocking absence of insight'

Mr Mullen said Kwan's fitness to practise medicine was "impaired" by the conviction and the "dangerous and destructive attitude" Kwan had shown since.

He said Kwan was "willing to use his medical skills, expertise and knowledge" for personal financial gain and there was a fear he would be "willing to do the same" to someone else in the future.

Mr Mullen referenced a document submitted by Kwan to the tribunal in which the doctor argued he should retain his medical licence.

In that document, Kwan claimed it was "with great regret" that Mr O'Hara had been injected with the toxin instead of a vaccine in an "isolated and unprecedented mistake", which Mr Mullen said was "nonsense" and showed a "shocking absence of any insight into the reality of what happened".

'Family relationship difficulties'

Kwan also sought to blame others, such as his lawyers for their advice to plead guilty and the judge being "misled" by prosecutors, Mr Mullen said.

Mr Mullen said the public confidence in all doctors would be "not merely undermined but destroyed" if the tribunal did not find him "impaired".

"Patients must be able to trust doctors with their lives," Mr Mullen said. "What trust could the public put in a doctor who carefully planned a complex and callous murder for their own financial gain?"

Mr Mullen also it would be the "ultimate insult" to all medical professionals if Kwan was not found to be impaired.

In response, Kwan said his career was "unblemished" and his crime arose from "family relationship difficulties" unrelated to his work, adding the safety of his patients had "never been compromised".

He also said he "deeply" regretted and had insight into his offending.

The tribunal continues.