The case of a former nurse in Germany, already convicted of murdering ten patients, is growing far beyond the original trial. Prosecutors in Aachen are now investigating more than 120 additional suspected cases, according to a spokesperson who spoke to the German Press Agency. So far, 39 bodies have been exhumed. Prosecutors in nearby Cologne have ordered the exhumation of seven more bodies, according to Kurier.
The Aachen Regional Court sentenced the former nurse to life in prison last November for ten murders and 27 attempted murders. The court also declared the crime particularly serious, a decision that usually rules out release after 15 years.
According to the verdict, the man gave seriously ill patients excessive doses of sedatives during his night shifts at a clinic in Würselen. In some cases, he combined the drugs with painkillers or administered them more than once.
The court said his actions may have been driven by a personal discomfort with certain patients and by his own rigid idea of order. The former nurse rejected the accusations during the trial.
The crimes for which he was convicted took place between December 2023 and May 2024. The new investigation concerns possible killings before that period. The man had worked at the Würselen clinic since 2020, and investigators are currently examining cases dating back to September 2022.
More suspected cases could still emerge. Aachen prosecutors had already indicated after the trial that they expected to bring another charge against him. However, a spokesperson said a new indictment was unlikely before next year.
Cologne prosecutors are also investigating possible killings because the man worked at a clinic there until 2020. They warned that the complex investigation would take considerable time, as officials continue examining medical records, earlier deaths and the circumstances surrounding the exhumed bodies.
