German serial killer nurse convicted of 85 more murders

OLDENBURG, Germany — A former nurse who confessed to killing more than four dozen patients in Germany was found guilty Thursday of murdering 85 and was sentenced to life in prison, with the judge calling the scope of his crimes “incomprehensible.”

It was the third conviction for the nurse, Niels Högel, who is believed to be the most prolific serial killer in peacetime Germany, and perhaps the world. But for the families of the nearly 100 people whom he was accused of killing while in his care, the trial had aimed to serve as a form of belated justice by trying to find answers to why they had died.

The presiding judge, Sebastian Bührmann, had emphasized that the purpose of the trial went beyond a determination of guilt: It was to try to find answers about how and why the patients had died. But he acknowledged that in 15 other cases, the court had failed to find enough evidence to support a murder conviction.

“Despite all of our attempts, we could only lift part of the fog that hangs over this trial,” the judge said. “That fills us with a certain sadness.”

Högel had been accused of administering overdoses of drugs that caused cardiac arrest so that he could try to revive patients heroically.

Under German law, a person convicted of murder can be sentenced only to life in prison, with the possibility of parole after 15 years, depending on the severity of the crime. Högel is already serving a life sentence for other murders, and the judge made clear that his record would ensure he is not eligible for early parole.

Officials believe Högel killed as many as 300 patients while working at two clinics in northern Germany between 2000 and 2005, although the true number may never be known.