A DOCTOR who forged his wife's signature to sell their home has been suspended from practising as a GP.

Dr Kashif Samin, a GP at Four Seasons Medical Centre in Orford, has been banned from the profession for four months following a Medical Practitioners Tribunal Service hearing in Manchester last week.

The MPTS panel heard that Dr Samin and his then wife, who is also a doctor, had moved to a house in North Wales in 2008 before splitting up in 2012.

In May 2013, she was informed that their joint mortgage account had been closed and later discovered that Dr Samin had sold their matrimonial home by forging her signature on documents.

All proceeds from the sale had been transferred to Dr Samin's personal account.

North Wales Police received a compliant of fraud in 2015, with Dr Kashif Samin later admitting two counts of making a false instrument at Mold Crown Court in August 2016.

He was ordered to carry out 100 hours of unpaid work and was handed a 12-month community order.

Dr Samin was also ordered to pay £535 costs and a £60 victim surcharge.

A MPTS hearing, running from Wednesday, July 19, to Friday, July 21, found that his fitness to practise was impaired and suspended him from the General Medical Council register for four months.

Tribunal chairman Linda Lee said: "The tribunal has noted that although there were no patient safety issues raised in your case, it has determined that your fitness to practise is impaired.

"The tribunal has considered that financial impact that this may have upon you, but given the findings made it could seriously undermine the public confidence in the profession and the regulatory process if you were allowed to continue in unrestricted practice.

"Accordingly, the tribunal has determined that it is in the public interest to make an order suspending your registration from today."

Dr Samin told the hearing that the incident had been 'a tragedy' for him and that he was a 'man of good character, a keen learner and a hard worker'.

He added that 'personal life stressors' had led to his mistake and that he was 'remorseful' for his crimes.

Christine Brierley, practice manager at the Orford Jubilee Neighbourhood Hub-based doctor's surgery, said: "Following on from a MPTS ruling, Dr Samin has been suspended from his work as a GP at Four Seasons Medical Centre.

"As soon as the practice was made aware of the outcome, we took appropriate action.

"This ruling relates to a personal matter for the doctor, and at no time was patient safety compromised.

"We are making the necessary arrangements for patients to be seen by an alternative healthcare professional."