Fake TikTok doctor Matthew Lani who tried to sneak in to a hospital released after being arrested for fraud

A TikTok user who pretended to be a doctor and then attempted to sneak into a hospital dressed in medical scrubs and wearing a stethoscope has been released after being arrested for fraud.

Matthew Lani, who had hundreds of thousands of followers on TikTok, claimed to be a doctor in his native South Africa and used his social media platform to share medical advice with his followers.  He was arrested on Sunday (29 October) when he tried to enter Helen Joseph Hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa's biggest city and capital of Gauteng province. He was reportedly caught trying to sneak past security while dressed in medical scrubs and wearing a surgical mask and a stethoscope in an attempt to make himself look like a real doctor.

On Tuesday (30 October), however, the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) said it had "no evidence" to charge Lani. Spokesperson Phindi Mjonondwane said the NPA could not link Lani to the offences of impersonating a doctor or misrepresentation, in a statement released to local media.

Lani is still under investigation by officials, however, and may face further charges in future. Mjonondwane said the NPA has ordered further investigations and upon receiving the results it will decide "whether or not criminal proceedings should be instituted against the suspect".

Gauteng province's department of health said Lani frequently used the Helen Joseph Hospital to "curate misleading content under the pretence that he was a qualified doctor". However, on Tuesday, Lani's lawyer told reporters outside Johannesburg magistrates' court: "His conduct . . . in actual fact, he was just doing it for entertainment. There is no complainant here that says he actually consulted as a doctor. . . so as a result there is no case against him."

Lani's release comes just days after another fake TikTok doctor who gave medical advice to 243,000 followers and posed for photos in scrubs was fined $13,000 (around £10,710) in Australia. He had almost 300,000 followers on TikTok before his account was closed. He then opened another one, which has more than 50,000 followers.

At the time of writing, NationalWorld has seen that TikTok has multiple Matthew Lani accounts, many of which appear to show Lani dressed in medical scrubs as a profile picture. Some of these do appear to be fan accounts, rather than pages which have been started by Lani himself.

Lani’s initial arrest for fraud brought a manhunt for him to the end, which had lasted several weeks, after questions arose over his qualifications. The Department of Education in South Africa states that Lani does not have any medical qualifications, and he did not even obtain his school-leaving certificate. Lani, however, insists that he received a medical degree from the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. The institution says this is not the case.

When he was arrested he allegedly tried to mislead authorities by saying his real name was Doctor Sanele Zingelwa, a second-year medical intern at the Tembisa Provincial Tertiary Hospital. The true Dr Zingelwe then opened a criminal case against Lani, accusing him of fraud. Lani is the latest person to be arrested on charges of impersonating a doctor in South Africa. There have been about 124 such arrests over the last three years, according to the Ministry of Health.