Doctor accused of injecting mother's partner with flesh-eating bacteria under guise of COVID vaccination

According to multiple reports, Thomas Kwan is accused of giving the fake vaccination to Patrick O'Hara on January 22nd

A British doctor is accused of trying to murder his mother's partner by injecting him with a fake Covid-19 booster that caused a flesh-eating bacterial disease.

Dr. Thomas Kwan, 53, allegedly injected Patrick O'Hara, 72, with the fake syringe on January 22 under the guise of a community nurse in an “audacious” plan out of concern for his inheritance, a court heard on Thursday, October 22 . 3, per The GuardianBBC and Sky News.

Kwan sent two fake doctor's notes stating that O'Hara was coming for a home visit for his Covid-19 injection, the media added. He then checked into a hotel at 2:45 a.m. on the day of the visit under a false name before later making his way to his mother Jenny Leung's house as a nurse.

Kwan, a partner at a medical practice in Sunderland, England, allegedly spent 45 minutes at the property while conducting medical tests and administering the fake booster shot to O'Hara.

He reportedly told the court that he administered the injection to cause “no more than mild pain and discomfort.”

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O'Hara felt “terrible pain” after the injection and went to the hospital, where doctors diagnosed him with a “rare and life-threatening disease” called necrotizing fasciitis. The GuardianBBC and Sky News reported.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention describes this as a “flesh-eating disease” that “can very quickly evolve into a life-threatening emergency.” Early symptoms include “fever, severe pain, and an infection that spreads quickly.”

According to the media, prosecutor Peter Makepeace said in court: “No later than November 2023 and probably long before that [Kwan] devised an elaborate plan to kill his mother's longtime partner, Patrick O'Hara…It was a plan to murder a man in plain sight, a man right in front of his own mother.”

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Jurors were reportedly told that Leung named her long-term partner O'Hara in her will so he could stay in her home. According to Sky News, this decision put a “strain” on her relationship with her son.

Kwan has reportedly denied attempted murder and a second charge of causing grievous bodily harm with intent, but pleaded guilty to administering a noxious substance, according to multiple media outlets.

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After the injection, O'Hara remained in intensive care for weeks while doctors cut flesh from his arm to fight the disease.

PEOPLE has contacted Newcastle Crown Court for further comment. The process continues.

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