Neil Hopper used nearly $590,000 in fraudulent insurance payouts to bankroll luxury purchases and social media clout after deliberately having both legs amputated in a disturbing scheme that stunned the British medical community, per The Daily Mail.
The 49-year-old former NHS vascular surgeon claimed he lost his limbs due to sepsis following a family camping trip. In reality, he used dry ice to freeze his legs and staged the medical emergency, all while harboring a fetish for amputations and consuming graphic content involving self-mutilation.
Hopper, who continued to collect his $190,000 annual salary while receiving $590,000 in compensation, funneled the money into high-end goods and home upgrades. His most extravagant splurge was a $325,000 renovation of his Truro home, which he documented on Instagram with captions like “Chateau Hopper v2.0 loading…” and “No turning back now!!! #theresaholeinmyhouse.”
He also spent $125,000 on luxury watches, including two Rolexes and a rare Richard Mille, $28,000 on a high-end camping trailer, $19,000 on a hot tub and $7,500 on a designer wood-burning stove. “I’m starting to think that I may need an intervention!” he wrote in one post, showing off his growing watch collection. His then-wife Rachel replied, “That had better not be another watch!” before joking about his poor timekeeping.
Rachel Hopper, a senior nurse and mother of their two children, received $66,000 in bank transfers from him. There is no indication she was aware of the fraud, and she left him once the truth came out.
Hopper’s social media persona, “The Bionic Surgeon,” launched within days of his second six-figure payout in July 2019. His early posts showed him learning to walk on prosthetics, earning praise from colleagues and strangers alike. But the account quickly shifted to a highlight reel of his extravagant lifestyle.
He posted pictures of his new kitchen, his son enjoying the remodeled space, and his prosthetic limbs stored in custom cabinetry. “New cupboards finished! Anyone else got a leg and foot cupboard??” he joked.
He even flaunted a $75,000 Kia EV6 electric vehicle, partially funded by the taxpayer-backed Motability scheme, and added a $6,300 personalized license plate reading “NII HOP.” In a private message, he revealed his true intentions: “I’ll get a m### car from Motability for sure.”
Hopper’s scheme wasn’t just about money. He craved recognition. In 2020, he was honored with the “Against All Odds” award at the Amplifon Awards for Brave Britons, hosted by BBC’s Rachel Burden. He appeared on national television, gave interviews, and was even shortlisted by the European Space Agency in its search for a disabled astronaut.
His followers flooded his posts with praise, with one writing: “#webloodyloveyou xxx.”
But investigators later uncovered messages where Hopper detailed his plan to “milk” his injuries for all they were worth—both financially and publicly.
The full extent of his deception unraveled in 2022, when authorities traced the fraudulent insurance claims and taxpayer-funded benefits back to his staged injuries.
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