UK surgeon amputates his own legs to claim nearly Rs 6 crore in insurance payouts

Neil Hopper, who has not practised medicine since March 2023, was suspended from the medical register by the General Medical Council.

A prominent UK vascular surgeon has been accused of deliberately amputating both of his own legs in a calculated attempt to fraudulently claim close to 500,000 GBP in insurance payouts. Neil Hopper, 49, formerly employed at the Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust, allegedly misled insurers by claiming his amputations were the result of sepsis rather than self-inflicted injuries.

The court heard that Hopper submitted two major insurance claims between June 3 and June 26, 2019. One claim, filed with the Arriva Group, was for 235,622 GBP, while the other, submitted to Old Mutual, totalled 231,031 GBP. Prosecutors stated that Hopper knowingly provided false information in both cases, concealing the true nature of how he lost his limbs in order to secure the payments.

The case took a more disturbing turn as prosecutors brought an additional charge against the former consultant, alleging that he encouraged another man, Marius Gustavson, to amputate the body parts of others. According to court documents, Hopper had purchased videos from a website known as Eunuch Maker, which reportedly depicts and promotes the removal of limbs. The court was told that this alleged encouragement occurred between August 21, 2018 and December 4, 2020.

Hopper, who has not practised medicine since March 2023, was suspended from the medical register by the General Medical Council in December 2023. The GMC had previously imposed restrictions on his licence shortly after the allegations surfaced. The Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust confirmed that Hopper had been employed there from 2013 until his suspension and said it had been cooperating fully with Devon and Cornwall Police throughout the investigation.

A spokesperson for the Trust stated: “These charges do not relate to Mr Hopper’s professional conduct, and there is no evidence that any patients were put at risk during his employment.” The Trust also advised: “Former patients with any questions or concerns about their treatment can contact the Royal Cornwall Hospitals’ patient experience team.”

In a prior interview with the BBC, Hopper gave a striking comment on his condition: “Losing my legs made life more interesting. The thought of power tools being used on me was icky. It was really weird.”