A nurse is being accused of killing more than 100 patients over the course of several years while working at two hospitals in northwestern Germany.
The nurse, Niels Hoegel, is already serving a life sentence for two of the murders. However, on Thursday, prosecutors say they found 16 other cases in which Hoegel is suspected after examining toxicological examinations of patients that died during his time as a nurse.
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Back in August, the prosecutors said that the nurse might have killed at least 84 other patients beyond the ones that he is already serving time, according to CBS News.
The prosecutors are planning on filing further charges against Hoegel in 2018. His possibility of parole could be affected if he is given additional convictions.
Hoegel was first convicted of two murders and two attempted murders at a hospital in Delmenhorst in 2015. He was sentenced to life in prison for the charge of which he was found guilty.
During his trial, Hoegel explained that he purposefully caused cardiac crises in some 90 patients in Delmenhorst. He said he would do so because he enjoyed the feeling of being able to resuscitate them. At a later time, Hoegel told investigators that he also killed patients in Oldenburg.
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Hoegel was employed at the Oldenburg hospital from 1999 to 2002. He then worked at Delmenhorst from 2003 to 2005. In total, Hoegel is suspected in 62 cases in Delmenhorst and 38 in Oldenburg.
A wider investigation involving both hospitals involved the authorities reviewing more than 500 patient files and hospital records. The police exhumed 134 bodies from 67 cemeteries and questioned the suspect on 6 occasions.
