Berlin doctor gets life term for 15 patient murders
What's next: Prosecutors are investigating 76 more suspected deaths, which could make the case one of Germany's biggest serial murder cases.
A Berlin court sentenced a 41-year-old palliative care doctor to life in prison on July 8 for murdering 15 patients during home visits over nearly three years. The doctor, identified in court as Johannes M., was convicted of killing 12 women and three men between September 2021 and July 2024 by giving them lethal doses of anesthetic and a muscle relaxant without consent. Judges said the victims, ages 25 to 94, were seriously ill but not facing imminent death. The court found his guilt particularly grave, ordered preventive detention after his sentence and barred him from practicing medicine for life. Prosecutors are also examining 76 additional suspected cases. In several killings, they said, he set apartment fires to hide the crimes.