A Florida surgeon, Thomas Shaknovsky, has been indicted for manslaughter after allegedly removing a patient’s liver instead of his spleen during a 2024 operation that led to the patient’s death.

Prosecutors say Shaknovsky made a critical surgical error during a planned splenectomy on 70-year-old William Bryan, causing catastrophic blood loss on the operating table.

Authorities allege he continued the procedure despite realizing complications and later misidentified the removed organ.

A grand jury in Florida determined there was probable cause for second-degree manslaughter, a felony that could carry up to 15 years in prison, The Guardian has reported.

The case follows a broader investigation by state and local officials, and Shaknovsky has also lost medical licenses in other states.