 Patel was suspended from the government's register of pathologists in July 2009, pending a GMC inquiry. The inquiry concerned 26 charges related to autopsies in four other cases. In one case Patel was accused of having failed to spot signs of abuse on the body of a five-year-old girl who had died after a fall at home, and of having failed to check with the hospital about its investigation into her injuries. The child's body was exhumed for a second postmortem, and her mother was convicted. The hearings concluded in August 2010; Patel was suspended for three months for "deficient professional performance." In May 2011 the GMC opened an investigation into his handling of the Tomlinson autopsy. He was struck off the medical register in August 2012.
