In November 2025, a nurse in Germany was sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of murdering 10 patients and attempting to murder 27 others.
The deaths occurred between December 2023 and May 2024 at Rhein-Maas Hospital in Würselen — a town about 50 miles west of Bonn, near Germany’s border with the Netherlands.
Now, the chief public prosecutor in Aachen, Katja Schlenkermann-Pitts, told the BBC investigators fear the true number of victims could be far higher — potentially as many as 100.
In the interview, Schlenkermann–Pitts said authorities are reviewing “a correspondingly high number of suspicious cases,” with multiple bodies being exhumed so autopsies can be conducted.
During the trial, prosecutors argued the nurse killed patients by administering excessive doses of sedatives and painkillers while working night shifts, often selecting people who were already seriously ill.
The nurse had worked at the hospital since 2020. According to the BBC, many of the cases now under renewed scrutiny may date back to before that period.
Authorities plan to exhume around 60 bodies as part of the expanding investigation, and officials are still awaiting additional autopsy reports while the process continues.
The BBC also reported that prosecutors in Cologne have opened a separate investigation tied to another facility where the nurse previously worked.
It remains unclear whether prosecutors will pursue additional charges. The man continues to maintain his innocence.
He has claimed he did not realize he was giving fatal doses of medication — an argument that was rejected by hospital leadership, investigators, prosecutors, and the jury.
