Berlin doctor faces additional murder charges

Germany’s public prosecutor on Wednesday announced new murder charges against a Berlin-based palliative care doctor, who is now suspected of killing at least 15 patients.

Authorities warned the number of victims could rise significantly, as investigators are currently reviewing 75 additional cases. The 40-year-old doctor had been in custody since August 2024.

Initially, prosecutors identified four victims, later raising the count to eight, then 10, and now 15. The alleged murders occurred while the suspect was employed by a nursing service providing care for terminally ill patients. The known deaths date back to 2021.

Prosecutors said the doctor allegedly administered a “lethal mixture of various medications” to a 25-year-old woman in September 2021 without medical justification. Similar methods are believed to have been used in subsequent cases.

Crucially, investigators noted that the patients were not in an acute terminal phase at the time of death.

The doctor came under suspicion following the deaths of four patients between June 11 and July 24, 2024. The victims, aged 72 to 94, died in their Berlin homes, which were then set on fire in what investigators believe was an attempt to cover up the killings.

Police initially investigated the incidents as arson resulting in death.

However, suspicions about the doctor escalated when his care service provided crucial tips that supported the case, prosecutors said.

The case is set to be brought before the Berlin regional court, while the homicide division of Berlin’s State Office of Criminal Investigations continues to examine patient records linked to the doctor.

(dpa/NAN)