Neil Hopper took nearly £500,000 from insurers after falsely claiming he had sepsis

A surgeon who froze his legs so they would require amputation to satisfy a sexual obsession before making nearly £500,000 in insurance claims has been jailed.

Neil Hopper, a 49-year-old vascular surgeon, was given 32 months after he pleaded guilty to two charges of fraud by false representation. This related to claims made to insurance companies that his legs had been amputated because of sepsis rather than self-inflicted injury.

He also admitted three charges of possessing extreme pornographic images relating to videos from a website called the EunuchMaker.

Despite reassurances from NHS officials, former patients of Hopper are now seeking legal advice over the treatment they received from him for fear it was not needed.