Silicon Valley: India-born surgeon Jayant Patel, facing charges of manslaughter and negligence for the death of 13 of his patients in Australia, has denied the allegations levelled against him.
Patel's federal public defender Susan Russell told the court that her client "denies the allegations out of Australia."
The extradition proceeding will not begin until April and it is not yet known if he will fight against it.
Detention hearing for the 57-year old surgeon, dubbed "Dr Death", who was arrested by FBI agents at his home in Portland, Oregon on Monday, is scheduled for today.
The government of Australia is seeking extradition of Patel to face 16 charges in connection with three deaths arising from botched surgeries and falsifying records during his two-year tenure at a rural public hospital in Queensland after he left Portland.
He faces three life sentences if convicted on the charges, which also include allegations of grievous bodily harm, negligence and fraud.
Patel appeared with a court-appointed attorney and told the judge on Tuesday that he could "most likely not" afford to hire a lawyer, The Oregonian newspaper reported yesterday.
Patel "schemed to hide his history of professional misconduct from officials at an Australian hospital," the US attorney's office said in a memo filed with the court on Tuesday.
Prior to moving to Australia, Patel worked at Kaiser Permanente in Portland, where he was disciplined by the Oregon State Board of Medical Examiners for "gross or repeated acts of negligence."
According to board records, Patel was also found to have engaged in "unprofessional or dishonourable conduct," while working at the hospital from 1989 to 2001.
According to the complaint filed in US court, he removed a healthy gland in one patient, missing the cancerous mass. In another case, he accidentally tore a patient's esophagus.
