Man awarded just £20,000 after his penis was chopped off during a botched circumcision
Man awarded just £20,000 after his penis was chopped off during a botched circumcision
- The unnamed victim reportedly lost about 90 percent of his penis during the surgery
- Surgeons botched the procedure and he waited 10 hours for reattachment
A 22-year-old man who had his penis cut off during a botched circumcision at the age of ten has had compensation of £500,000 reduced to just £20,000 after the Malaysian government successfully appealed his claim.
The unnamed victim reportedly lost about 90 percent of his penis during the surgery that took place at the local hospital in his hometown of Kuala Lipis, Malaysia, on December 13, 2010.
The medics who allegedly cut his genitals were not qualified in microsurgery, and the decision was made to transfer the boy to Selayang Hospital, where better qualified surgeons could attempt to repair the terrible job.
But the delay meant he didn’t have surgery until ten hours later, after which all hope of reattaching his penis was lost.
He then remained in the hospital for over a month amid a painful and desperate recovery process, after which, with the help of his mother, he filed a lawsuit against the government and hospital directors.
On April 7, 2022, judge Datuk Akhtar Tahir ruled in his favor and awarded him damages of MYR 3.1 million (£532,409).
Judge Akhtar said in June last year: “The delay of the medical staff in treating the plaintiff’s injury had destroyed all hopes of a successful operation to save the injured part of the plaintiff.
“Selayang Hospital was informed of the complainant’s transfer, but medical staff took no steps to prepare for possible surgery.
“It is clear that no amount awarded by the court will compensate for the damages suffered by the plaintiff.
“All the shame and humiliation suffered by the claimant are the result of this terrible loss.
“His mother had stated that the plaintiff has been in a shell since the age of 10 and finds it difficult to interact with others, let alone develop the courage to ever get married.”
The amount claimed by the plaintiff was in excess of £500,000, including a litany of general, special and serious damages collectively owed by all defendants.
But the payout was significantly reduced after the government filed an appeal that the Putrajaya Court of Appeal accepted.
A three-judge panel ruled unanimously at a hearing earlier this month that the general damages of MYR 2 million (GBP 343,432) received by the plaintiff were excessive.
Judge Ravinthran Paramaguru, chairman of the panel, said the amount was not supported by any documentation.
Paramaguru was quoted as saying: ‘Therefore, the general damages of MYR 2 million are reduced to MYR 100,000 (£17,172).
“The special damages are reduced from MYR 23,556 (£4,045).”
Fake doctor Torben K, 46, has been sentenced to five years in prison after performing a botched penis enlargement operation that killed his patient
The drastic reduction in the plaintiff’s damages came just weeks after a German man posing as a cosmetic surgeon was sentenced to five years in prison for performing a botched penis enlargement operation that killed his patient.
Fake medic Torben K, 46, a catering worker from Solingen, Germany, had injected the patient’s manhood and scrotum with silicone oil in what was said to be a ‘girth-enhancing’ procedure.
Judges at the Wuppertal District Court jailed him on August 28 after he was found guilty of causing death by grievous bodily harm.
The 32-year-old victim – not named in court – died of sepsis seven months after the painful operation in July 2019.
The court heard the fake doctor had no medical qualifications and offered his penis enlargement services online.