The Luxembourg public prosecutor's office has opened a preliminary investigation into the Wilmes case after receiving two reports concluding that certain surgical procedures performed by the doctor were not medically justified.
The reports, submitted to the prosecutor's office at the end of April by the Ministry of Health, are unequivocal in alleging that Dr Philippe Wilmes carried out several unnecessary orthopaedic operations, something a number of patients are now claiming.
In a statement released on Thursday, the public prosecutor's office said that, according to the two reports it had received, some of the procedures performed may not have been medically justified in light of best practice and current scientific knowledge, and may have left the patients concerned with lasting physical harm.
These findings led the prosecutor's office to open a preliminary investigation, weighing both incriminating and exculpatory evidence, against the doctor, who has been suspended by the Health Ministry until 2028. The inquiry focuses in particular on acts that could amount to grievous bodily harm, as well as forgery and fraud, among other possible offences.
The investigation is ongoing, and the public prosecutor's office has also received a written statement from the doctor.
