Criminal investigation into fake medical certificates for prison staff – two doctors under scrutiny
An internist and an orthopaedic surgeon are being investigated criminally for issuing false sick leave certificates to prison officers. The Audit Office has submitted evidence to the Police.
Two doctors named at Police Headquarters for false sick leave certificates
An Audit Office official recently testified before investigators at the TA Police Headquarters, naming an internist and an orthopaedic surgeon who are subject to criminal investigation for issuing sick leave certificates on false pretences. According to Politis, the case is proceeding following instructions from the Legal Service.
The evidence that led to the criminal investigation was recorded in a special report from the Audit Office dated 10 March 2026, which was forwarded to the Attorney General. The report refers to "serious suspicions of collusion between doctors and prison officers" for the purpose of defrauding the state.
Thousands of days of sick leave in six months
The scale of the problem is reflected in the figures: from January to July 2026, four officers, 12 senior prison guards and 38 prison guards accumulated a total of 5,548 days of sick leave. These figures concern only employees with sick leave exceeding 40 days, so the actual picture is even broader.
A sample inspection conducted by the Audit Office covered the period 2022–2024. From this it emerged that 171 correctional staff members received sick leave exceeding the 42 days prescribed by law in at least one year. Of these, 44 exceeded the limit for two consecutive years and 34 exceeded it in all three years – percentages corresponding to approximately 10% and 8% of the total staff of the Prisons Department respectively.
Eight prison guards, two doctors, dozens of certificates
The Audit Office examined in detail eight prison guards who were absent between 43 and 229 days per year. All eight used medical certificates from the same two doctors – the internist and the orthopaedic surgeon who are now under criminal investigation.
In one characteristic case, a prison guard who was absent for 205 days in 2023 and 202 days in 2024 submitted 51 and 60 medical certificates respectively. 94% of the certificates for 2023 and 95% for 2024 had been issued by the two doctors under investigation.
Discrepancies in the National Health System
Comparison of the medical certificates with data from the National Health System revealed significant inconsistencies across five specific points.
For four of the eight prison guards, the internist was registered as their personal doctor in the National Health System; however, a significant number of certificates he issued did not correspond to any recorded visit in the system. For the other four, the same internist does not appear even as a personal doctor, yet he issued a large number of certificates – also without recorded visits.
Similar gaps were found in the orthopaedic surgeon's certificates: five of the eight prison guards submitted related certificates, but for most of them there was no recorded visit in the National Health System.
Particularly revealing is the case of a prison guard who submitted 54 sick leave certificates, while only six visits were found in the National Health System – of which only three matched the date and diagnosis on the certificate.
The comparison also revealed chronological contradictions: in several cases the recorded visit to the doctor is later than the date the sick leave began.
An additional inconsistency was found in the diagnoses: the internist under investigation issued certificates for orthopaedic conditions – osteoarthritis, sprains, knee injuries and cervical syndrome. Conversely, the orthopaedic surgeon granted sick leave citing "Migraine" as the reason.
Delay in the medical board process
Furthermore, cases of absences during the period 1 January 2023 – 31 May 2025 were examined. The Audit Office found that prison guards with a large number of short-term sick leaves were delayed in submitting the relevant certificates. This delay resulted in their referral to the medical board – and consequently their examination – taking place at a later time, with the result that the medical board could not confirm whether they were actually ill.
Attorney General of the Republic Andreas Papakonstantinou stated to Politis that the reasonable suspicions arising from the investigation have been referred to the competent authorities for further inquiry.
Source: Politis