CHICAGO – Dr. Van Koinis died by suicide in September but the investigation into his death revealed “a note that raised questions over his vaccination practices, sheriff’s deputies said,” USA Today reported.

The Cook County Sheriff’s Office said that “when investigating his death, there were ‘record keeping issues’ that made it unclear which patients received vaccinations and which did not,” USA Today reported.

“Investigators also found evidence to suggest that Koinis did not vaccinate children at parents’ requests, the sheriff’s office said in a statement,” USA Today reported.

Sheriff Tom Dart told the Chicago Tribune that Dr. Koinis “was well known for being someone who was into homeopathic medicine, and from what we have determined, it was well known that people opposed to vaccination could go to him,” USA Today reported.

Dart also told WBBM-TV that “investigators believe parents would use falsified records so their children could attend schools that would otherwise require all students to be vaccinated,” the USA Today report continued.

“It’s unclear how widespread the practice was, but Dart told the news outlets that Koinis may have been falsifying the records for up to 10 years,” USA Today reported.

The sheriff’s office said that “Koinis had been licensed to practice medicine in Illinois since 1991,” USA Today reported, adding that “he primarily served patients from Chicago’s southwest side and nearby suburbs.”

Parents commented on Koinis’ vaccination practices with Tatiana Rudolph, a mother of two who were patients of Koinis, telling WBBM-TV that “he never hesitated to give vaccinations. He never hesitated at all. If they needed them for school, they were getting them.”

Mary Mullaney told WBBM-TV about her son’s vaccinations from Koinis, “I was just there for the checkup and he actually ended up telling me that my son didn’t need the vaccines that the school had said,” USA Today reported, adding that “she said her son’s school later contacted her about his vaccination record, and they returned to Koinis to get the vaccinations.”

“When I went back to Dr. Koinis, he was kind of surprised. We got the shots. He gave it to him. I hope that’s what he gave him,” Mullaney said, USA Today reported.

 Suicide Lifeline: If you or someone you know may be struggling with suicidal thoughts, you can call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-TALK (8255) any time of day or night or chat online.

Crisis Text Line provides free, 24/7, confidential support via text message to people in crisis when they dial 741741.