Doctor Charged As Boy Died After ‘Autism Cure’

A doctor in the United States has been charged with causing the death of a five-year-old boy from Plymouth after he gave him a controversial chemical treatment for autism.

Dr Roy Kerry, 68, is accused of using the wrong drug and administering it incorrectly while attempting to use chelation therapy on Abubakar Tariq Nadama, who was from Glenholt.

The Nadama family, originally from Nigeria, travelled from Plymouth to Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania, in order for the boy to undergo the treatment.

However, Abubakar had a heart attack in Dr Kerry’s office after allegedly receiving an intravenous injection on August 23, 2005.

The treatment is designed to remove heavy metals from the body in a bid to ‘cure’ autism, and a postmortem examination showed that Abubakar’s death was caused by a sudden drop in the levels of calcium in his blood.

Mercury in the blood has been seen by some parents as a potential cause of autism and has been linked to the MMR jab, but the link has never been proven.

Chelation is designed to remove mercury and other metals, but it has not been approved by the American government for treating autism.

Abubakar was receiving his third chelation treatment at Dr Kerry’s clinic, the Advanced Integrative Medicine Center in Portersville, near Pittsburgh, when he died.

Dr Kerry, who denies the charges, is to stand trial for involuntary manslaughter, endangering the welfare of a child and reckless endangerment.

Abubakar’s parents, Mawra and Rufai Nadama, have filed a wrongful death suit against Dr Kerry, although they did not attend the hearing last Thursday.

Mr and Mrs Nadama are also suing another doctor, as well as ApotheCure, a Dallas company, and seven sister corporations.

Pennsylvania’s physician licensing agency filed six disciplinary charges in September against Dr Kerry, including accusations of unprofessional conduct and breaching the standard of care.

Dr Kerry, who is 68, has denied any wrongdoing.

Earlier this year, the Nadamas’ Pittsburgh lawyer, John Gismondi, said: “This is a real human tragedy that never should have happened.”

He said the family was determined to get to the bottom of what happened and to spare other families from possibly going through the same ordeal.