A palliative care nurse in Germany has been sentenced to life behind bars for the murder of 10 patients and attempted murder of 27 others with lethal injections, reports CBS News.
Prosecutors said he had injected the mostly elderly patients with large doses of sedatives or painkillers, with the simple aim of reducing his workload during night shifts.
The Aachen court found the 44-year-old man guilty of the offences committed between December 2023 and May 2024 in a local hospital.
The crimes carried a “particular severity of guilt” which should bar him from early release after 15 years, normally an option in such cases.
Prosecutors said the man suffered from a personality disorder, had never shown any compassion for the patients, and had voiced no remorse during the trial.
He had used morphine and midazolam, a muscle relaxant sometimes used for executions in the United States.
The court heard that when he was faced with patients who needed a higher level of care he showed only “irritation” and a lack of empathy.
Exhumations have taken place to identify further victims and he may be put on trial again.
Similar cases
The case echoes that of nurse Niels Hoegel, who was handed a life sentence in 2019 for murdering 85 patients and who is believed to be modern Germany’s most prolific serial killer.
Hoegel killed patients with lethal injections between 2000 and 2005 before being caught. Psychiatrists said he suffered from a “severe narcissistic disorder”.
More recently, in July, a 40-year-old palliative care specialist, Johannes M went on trial in Berlin accused of killing 15 patients with lethal injections between 2021 and 2024.
In at least five cases, he is suspected of setting fire to his victims’ homes in an attempt to cover up his crimes.
Prosecutors and police said he had no motive beyond killing and that his acts meet the legal definition of “lust for murder”.
In England, neonatal nurse Lucy Letby is serving a life sentence for murdering seven babies and attempting to murder six others. On 1 July, three former senior leaders at the hospital where Letby worked were arrested on suspicion of gross negligence manslaughter.
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
Killer nurse to spend life in prison for baby murders
German nurse murdered a 100 patients and nobody noticed