Warning: This article contains graphic descriptions of bodily harm which some readers may find distressing.
The reason why a surgeon had both of his legs amputated after watching the infamous Eunch Maker's videos has been revealed.
Neil Hopper, 49, pleaded guilty to two charges of fraud at Truro Crown Court on Thursday (4 September) after falsely claiming to insurance companies that his legs had been amputated due to illness.
The reality is that it was a self-inflicted injury. The disgraced vascular surgeon also admitted to three charges of possessing extreme pornographic images depicting genital mutilation, in relation to the Eunuch Maker website, which was run by Marius Gustavson.
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He's not the first person to be sentenced after connections to the sick website were revealed, with former vicar Geoffrey Baulcomb pleading guilty this year to causing grievous bodily harm with intent while being an associate of the Eunuch Maker.
It was said that the medical professional had a 'sexual interest' in cutting parts of his body off, and that he had his legs amputated as part of an insurance scam, said British officials.
He submerged his legs in ice and dry ice for eight hours so they could be removed, claiming to insurers that he had sepsis, prosecutor Nicholas Lee revealed.
Hopper was charged with two counts of insurance fraud in addition to the aforementioned three, BBC News reports.
He had carried out hundreds of amputation operations on patients in his time with the NHS before having his legs removed in 2019, as he was not just motivated by money, but his 'sexual interest in amputation', Lee said.
Speaking to the judge, the prosecutor added: "His motivations were a combination of obsession with removing parts of his own body and a sexual interest in doing so,
“It seems to have been a long-standing ambition of his."
Lee also claimed that the former surgeon 'enjoyed' the attention he got from the media as he had multiple appearances on TV as a result.
Hopper was struck from the medical register in December 2023, according to the NHS and has been jailed for 32 months.
Investigations into Eunuch Maker, a horrific body mutilation pornography website, where prosecutors say Hopper had bought videos, led to his arrest in March 2023.
Following his amputation, the surgeon made claims to the insurers which resulted in total payouts of £466,653.81, as Lee further claimed: "It is evident from the messages that Mr Hopper wished to become an amputee and it was always something he had dreamt of."
Hopper told the judge he 'bitterly regrets' the 'dishonesty' over the reason for his amputation, though he didn’t regret having the operation.
Defence attorney Andrew Langdon said Hopper felt he was 'in the wrong body' since childhood and claimed he saw his feet as an 'unwelcome extra'.
Gustavson, who was behind the Eunch Maker site, was sentenced to at least 22 years in prison last year for leading an extreme body modification ring.
Joshua Nair