An NHS vascular surgeon who had his own legs removed has been jailed for two years and eight months for insurance fraud and possessing extreme pornography.
Neil Hopper, 49, of Truro, Cornwall, carried out hundreds of amputation operations before having his own legs removed in 2019.
Truro Crown Court heard he lied to insurers by claiming that injuries to his legs were the result of sepsis and not self-inflicted.
It heard that in May 2019 Hopper had below knee amputations after a “mysterious illness”. In fact he had used ice and dry ice to freeze his own legs so they had to be removed, said prosecutor Nicholas Lee.
The court heard Hopper, who admitted two counts of fraud and three of possessing extreme pornography, had a “sexual interest in amputation”.
Judge James Adkin said in sentencing that he accepted that Hopper, who had no previous convictions, was remorseful.
However, the “level of harm” in three videos of body mutilation which were the subject of the pornography charges, was “exceptionally high”, he said.
Hopper had both legs amputated after complaining that his feet were in pain.
He was treated for suspected sepsis before he was told by surgeons that he should have his legs amputated and he was operated on.
He did not tell the medics the real cause of his injuries, the court heard.
The fraudulent insurance claims from two firms totalled more than £466,000 the court heard.
Hopper had been tempted by “greed” said Mr Lee.
He had messaged a friend about the claims saying he should “milk it”, the court heard.
He “enjoyed” the interest from the media in his case, Mr Lee told the court.
“His motivations were a combination of obsession with removing parts of his own body and a sexual interest in doing so,” he said.
“It seems to have been a long-standing ambition of his,” he said.
Feet were ‘unwelcome extra’
After the amputations, he was back at work in just under six months with prosthetic legs.
He was arrested in March 2023 and has been suspended from the medical register since December 2023.
Andrew Langdon, KC, said in mitigation, that the offences had been a “shock” to friends.
He said: “He [Hopper] has been committed to working to the service of others.
“The whole saga is very difficult to comprehend.”
The extreme pornography offences were connected to videos of body mutilations that Hopper had purchased online and did not include children, the court heard.
Hopper was identified following investigations into Marius Gustavson who ran the EunuchMaker website.
Mr Lee told the court that Hopper had bought three videos from the website for £10 and £35, respectively, showing men willingly having their genitals removed.
He also exchanged about 1,500 messages with Gustavson about his own lower leg amputations and how he had done it, including asking how much dry ice he used.
Gustavson was jailed for life with a minimum term of 22 years at the Old Bailey in 2024 for leading an extreme body modification ring.
Hopper had suffered body dysphoria since childhood and his feet were an “unwelcome extra” and a “persisting never-ending discomfort” to him, said Mr Langdon.
Hopper did not regret the operations, but “bitterly regrets” the “dishonesty” about their cause, he said.
After the operations, Hopper had been “totally overwhelmed by support from friends and family which made it even more difficult to tell them what had really happened”.
Hopper, who is originally from Aberystwyth, Ceredigion, had been employed by the Royal Cornwall Hospitals NHS Trust (RCHT) from 2013 until he was arrested in March 2023.
A spokesperson for the Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust said after the case that the convictions did not relate to Mr Hopper’s “professional conduct” at its hospitals.
The trust had carried out “comprehensive clinical reviews of surgery” by Hopper, “including engaging an experienced independent clinical expert to review decisions to operate”, they said.
“We want to reassure the public that our exhaustive investigations have found no evidence whatsoever to indicate any risk or harm to patients at our hospitals,” they said.
‘Shock and grave concern’
Assistant Chief Constable Jim Pearce said after the case that Devon and Cornwall Police had “worked closely” with the trust and “none of the criminal charges related to Hopper’s professional conduct with no risk to patients he treated in his work at the hospital identified during the current police investigation”.
However, former patients of Hopper, including some who underwent amputations, have contacted a South West-based medical negligence firm.
They said they were concerned about the treatment they received from Hopper, in light of the criminal charges brought against him.
Mike Bird, partner at Enable Law, said the case had caused “shock and grave concern” among his former patients.
“Some have had life-changing surgery and are now worried it was not really needed,” Mr Bird said.
“While we understand that RCHT have said that the charges do not relate to his professional conduct and there is apparently no evidence suggesting any risk to patients, this is such a serious situation that there must be a rigorous public investigation.”
Jason Abbot, 38, from Hayle, whose foot was amputated by Hopper in November 2022 after painful arthritis in an ankle, said he had no concerns about his care.
“He was great, very supportive of the situation, [he gave] me loads of information about it and told me to have a really good think about it and I did.”
He said he “felt shocked” that Hopper had been convicted.
“I never thought he would do anything like that.”
Hopper also worked at the Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport, Wales, for a period of training in general surgery in 2011, Aneurin Bevan University Health Board has confirmed.
In an interview with the BBC in 2023 he also said he had worked in Swansea and Bangor.
The relevant health boards have been asked to confirm.
Additional reporting by Jenny Kumah
Source: BBC
