A devout Catholic mental health nurse has been permanently struck off from medical practice after she helped send money to ISIS alongside her businesswoman daughter. The case has drawn attention for highlighting how seemingly ordinary individuals can become involved in extremist networks.
Stella Oyella, in her fifties, was found to have assisted a man who fled to Syria with a violent extremist mindset in raising funds to carry out terrorist activities. The Band 7 nurse played an active role in transferring money from London to Uganda, which was then forwarded to Syria. Oyella’s daughter, Vanessa Atim, 32, also participated in the operation.
Oyella was jailed in 2024 for three years and has now been banned from practicing as a medical professional by the Nursing and Midwifery Council, NMC. At a panel hearing, it was determined that her actions breached fundamental tenets of the nursing profession and undermined public confidence.
Oyella qualified as a mental health nurse in August 2005. In December 2023, she was convicted of arranging the availability of property for the purposes of terrorism. The case revealed that in September 2014, a man, referred to as Person 1, left home for Syria after being radicalized by ISIS. By 2016, he had become short of funds and began appealing for financial assistance from his family.
Investigators found that Oyella became involved in 2017, acting as a channel for sending funds. She transferred small sums from London to Uganda, from where they were forwarded to Syria. She was sentenced at the Central Criminal Court in March 2024 to three years in prison, followed by a one-year licence period.
Her daughter, Vanessa Atim, who owns the enterprise Pro Intern that places interns with businesses, was also convicted and sentenced to three years and nine months in prison. Oyella was additionally ordered to pay a £170 victim surcharge and to register with the police for ten years.
During sentencing, the judge stressed that the events of 2014 and the atrocities committed by ISIS in Syria would have been widely reported in the news. He said both women had chosen to turn a blind eye to the fact that their money could support terrorist activity. At the time, Oyella was a Band 7 Senior Nurse within the East London NHS Foundation.
Patricia Richardson, Chair of the NMC hearing, emphasized the trust placed in nurses. She said patients and their families must have confidence that nurses act professionally at all times. Although the offences occurred outside Oyella’s clinical practice and no patients were put at risk, the panel ruled that her behaviour brought the nursing profession into disrepute and undermined public confidence.
The tribunal noted that Oyella’s conduct reflected a pattern of criminal behaviour, not an isolated incident, and that she had not fully accepted responsibility for her actions. Oyella and Atim had sent five payments totaling more than £1,800 to Joshua Ogaba, a former computer programmer and relative, who had joined ISIS.
Ogaba, a former Catholic altar boy from Finsbury Park in north London, converted to Islam while in prison between 2004 and 2006 and became increasingly radical. He disappeared from his family home in September 2014 and traveled through Cologne and Gaziantep in southern Turkey before arriving in Syria. He was eventually captured by the Syrian Democratic Forces in 2019 and died in custody from tuberculosis in April 2022.
Evidence gathered during the investigation included photographs of Ogaba posing with firearms, motorcycles, and homemade explosives. Investigators also recovered receipts for Western Union transfers from Uganda to Kenya and Lebanon, totaling £2,926, as well as further payments sent from London between 2017 and 2018. Money from Oyella’s account, often deposited by relatives, was used to facilitate these transfers.
Despite the seriousness of her actions, colleagues and witnesses testified in court that Oyella was regarded as a person of integrity and dedication. The judge acknowledged this but stressed that both women were aware of ISIS atrocities and had chosen to ignore the potential consequences of their actions.
The case has raised broader questions about the responsibilities of individuals when family members become involved in extremist networks, and the role of financial channels in supporting terrorist organisations. It also highlights the balance between personal loyalty and legal accountability, particularly for professionals entrusted with positions of public trust.
The NMC panel’s decision to strike off Oyella from nursing reflects the seriousness of her offences and the importance of maintaining public trust in healthcare professionals. The ruling serves as a reminder that even actions outside the workplace can have profound consequences for those in positions of responsibility.
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