Claims a Birmingham surgeon kept the bones of the patients examined

Claims that a surgeon took the bones of more than 5,000 patients he operated on have led to a police investigation.

Derek McMinn, who invented a hip treatment used on tennis star Sir Andy Murray, has been suspended from Edgbaston Hospital in Birmingham.

Owners Circle Health Group said it took the issues “incredibly seriously” and is investigating as well.

The hospital group said the Edgbaston facility was now under new leadership and that it “would leave no stone unturned in the investigation of these historic problems.”

West Mercia police said they were investigating an allegation “of failure to comply with legal licensing requirements under the Human Tissue Act of 2004,” following a referral from the Human Tissue Authority (HTA).

The claims about McMinn emerged in a report leaked by BMI Healthcare, which ran the hospital until June this year, when Circle Health Group took over, The Independent reported.

McMinn allegedly collected and stored body parts from patients over the age of 25, in violation of the Human Tissue Act, which prohibits the removal, storage or use of human tissue without proper consent, the newspaper said.

It is also alleged that he kept some of the bones on his farm in Worcestershire.

The investigation has continued for more than a year, and the matter was referred to the Information Commissioner’s Office, the body that reports directly to parliament, which subsequently took no further action.

The HTA stated that after “an investigation after concerns were raised at BMI The Edgbaston Hospital,” it made a referral to police.

Police said their investigation concerned a private premises in Worcestershire and that investigators were working “with the relevant authorities.”

The General Medical Council said it was aware of the concerns and asked BMI Healthcare to provide investigation reports and other relevant evidence.

He said he “can and will take action when there is evidence that a doctor poses a risk to patients or the public’s trust in the profession.”

According to his profile on the McMinn Center website, Mr. McMinn has performed more than 3,500 of his pioneering hip rejuvenation operations and more than 6,000 total patient hip replacements, “including several high-profile athletes.”

He graduated from St Thomas’ Hospital in London in 1977, where he won the Cheselden medal and first prize in surgery.

Circle Health Group said that “historical issues … have been reported to the appropriate authorities”, that it will “cooperate closely with regulators” and that “recommendations and learnings” have been made to staff.