A man from Essex who carried out illegal and unsafe male circumcisions, leaving his victims with lasting harm, has been jailed today for nine years.
Mohammed Alazawi, aged 54, from Essex, carried out a number of illegal male circumcisions between October 2016 and January 2022 on baby boys and older male children.Â
The Crown Prosecution Service said that the defendant was able to carry out the illegal and unsafe procedures due to non-therapeutic male circumcisions being ‘unregulated’ and not required to be carried out by a medical practitioner.Â
Mohammed Alazawi has been jailed for nine years after carrying out dozens of illegal and unsafe circumcisions
In some instances, Alazawi had pretended to be a doctor, with parents consenting to the circumcisions being carried out on their children.
The lie changed the procedures from ordinary circumcisions, which would have been safe and sanitary, to a procedure which was inherently unsafe or dangerous and therefore unlawful.Â
The offences came to light following an incident in Birmingham, where one victim suffered an infection, and the matter was reported to West Midlands Police.
On May 8, Alazawi was convicted of 40 offences, which included multiple counts of fraud, wounding with intent, administering and supplying prescription-only medicines, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm.Â
He also pleaded guilty to 20 offences, but was found guilty of 20 further offences following a trial, and he was sentenced to nine years’ imprisonment.Â
Anja Hohmeyer of the Crown Prosecution Service said: “Alazawi pretended to be a medical practitioner to unsuspecting families and carried out circumcisions in unsafe, unsanitary and harmful ways, demonstrating a blatant disregard for the safety of his young patients and the impact of his actions on his victims, their families, and communities.
“We hope that this conviction offers them some comfort in seeing Alazawi being brought to justice.”