German Doctor Sentenced to Life for Killing at Least 15 Palliative Care Patients

A Berlin court sentenced a 41-year-old palliative care doctor, identified only as Johannes M. due to German privacy laws, to life imprisonment for murdering at least 15 of his patients. The doctor was convicted of injecting lethal combinations of anesthetics and muscle relaxants without patient consent during home visits between September 2021 and July 2024. The victims, aged 25 to 94, were in serious condition but not imminently dying, according to prosecutors. Johannes M. admitted to killing at least 12 patients during the year-long trial but maintained he believed he was relieving suffering.

The investigation remains open, with suspicions involving 76 additional deaths under similar circumstances. Authorities examined 395 cases in total, suspecting 95 of them, with 15 confirmed murders. The doctor also allegedly attempted arson in four cases to conceal his crimes, which initially triggered the investigation. The court ruled the murders were committed under aggravating circumstances, permanently revoking his medical license and likely preventing early release.

Family members of victims testified emotionally during the trial, including the mother of the youngest victim, a 25-year-old woman, who insisted her daughter never expressed a desire to die. Another victim’s son recalled his mother’s plans to travel to the Baltic Sea, underscoring the unexpected nature of the deaths.

This case follows a previous notorious German healthcare serial killer, nurse Niels Högel, who was convicted in 2019 for killing 85 patients and suspected of many more. Högel’s crimes involved injecting patients to induce near-death states before attempting resuscitation to impress colleagues. Authorities acknowledged they may never know the full extent of his killings due to destroyed evidence and his incomplete memory.