The controversy surrounding ivermectin reached a fever pitch in July when the Elgazzar et al RCTs pre-print (led by Dr Ahmed Elgazzar from Benha University in Egypt) was retracted from
Research Square on 14 July.
It was not retracted by the author but by the server, Research Gate, based solely on the complaints of alleged 'fraudulent data,' 'data manipulation,' and 'plagiarism' by Jack Lawrence, currently studying for his biomedical sciences masters at St George's, University of London.
Research Square did not give the authors of the Elgazzar study prior notice of the retraction or the right of reply. The retraction, based on 'ethical concerns', came a day after Lawrence claimed he alerted them to the fraud. In the
Body of Evidence podcast interview, Lawrence states he was given the Elgazzar study to critique by his professor as part of his master's course. Then, he later states he was studying it, "looking for fraud" (at 13:28 in the timeline). He vividly described his discoveries of "patchwork plagiarism" akin to "a James Bond movie scene."
"There is a whole ivermectin hype…dominated by a mix of right-wing figures, anti-vaxxers and outright conspiracy theorists" Jack Lawrence stated in the 15 July,
Guardian article.
This statement can be viewed as disparaging given its use of derogatory stereotyping against those who support the scientific evidence in favor of ivermectin's prophylactic and therapeutic effectiveness.
The article was swiftly published only 24 hours after the Elgazzar paper was retracted by Research Square.
Melissa Davey, the medical editor of the Guardian, Australia, omitted important information regarding Lawrence. She failed to include details that this master's student also happens to be a journalist/blogger and founder of the
website and discussion forum called, GRFTR, grifters exposed, 'dedicated to countering online disinformation, misleading stories, and exposing online grifters of all types via debunkings, criticism, analysis, and review.'
According to the
Guardian article, Lawrence 'found the introduction section of the paper appeared to have been almost entirely plagiarised.' London-based Lawrence then contacted the chronic disease epidemiologist from the University of Wollongong in Australia, Gideon, currently studying for his PhD and Nick Brown, a data analyst affiliated with Linnaeus University in Sweden, to help him review the report.
It's worth noting the University of Wollongong is the recipient of a substantial grant from the BMGF (Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation).
What's unusual is that
Lawrence claims to have accessed the raw data by attempting to guess the passcode, which he claims ended up being "1 2 3 4."
Whether or not the raw data was accessed and done so by guessing at the password, is yet to be determined.
The fact that Lawrence admits to guessing at the password to get into a password protected database could be interpreted as hacking, given the definition is the following 'the gaining of unauthorized access to data in a system or computer.' This is concerning, since hacking is as illegal activity under UK law, according to the
Computer Misuse Act 1990.
Furthermore, in Elgazzar's email he shared the fact that he had contacted Melissa Davey of the
Guardian, to refute the claims made by Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz that "the data was just totally faked." He has strongly asserted defamation and intimated legal action.
In contrast, Davey writes 'Lawrence and the
Guardian sent Elgazzar a comprehensive list of questions about the data but did not receive a reply. The university's press office also did not respond.'
Since Davey's article was published exactly one day after the study was retracted by Research Square, perhaps Elgazzar was not able to respond to her within the 24-hour time frame. However, no update to the article has included Elgazzar's response to date.
Dr. Ahmed Elgazzar alarmingly stated in an email to a chief investigator of a large meta-analysis on ivermectin, "the data mentioned in the Guardian article is not the actual data of my raw materials."
Furthermore, in an email to Research Square, he accused Lawrence of "taking strange raw material that had been fabricated and added to another website and linked to my research, but after reviewing it I confirmed beyond any doubt that it does not belong to me at all."
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