A German doctor is on trial this week for the murder of 15 patients, in a chilling case that authorities fear may be only the tip of the iceberg. The 40-year-old palliative care specialist, identified by local media as Johannes M., is accused of administering fatal injections to 12 women and 3 men between September 2021 and July 2024.
The victims, aged 25 to 94, were allegedly given a lethal cocktail of sedatives and muscle relaxants, causing death within minutes. In several cases, Johannes M. is also accused of setting fire to victims’ homes to cover his tracks.
Dozens of other deaths under investigation
The investigation began in July 2024, when a colleague raised concerns about the number of patient deaths linked to Johannes M., particularly in connection with suspicious fires. He was arrested in August and initially linked to four deaths, but a deeper probe revealed many more suspicious cases. By April 2025, he had been charged with 15 murders.
Prosecutors now say a further 96 deaths are still being examined, including that of the doctor’s own mother-in-law, who died under unexplained circumstances during a family visit to Poland in early 2024.
According to German newspaper Die Zeit, Johannes M. had previously written a doctoral thesis on the psychology of serial killers, beginning with the question: “Why do people kill?”
Muscle relaxant caused death in minutes
Prosecutors say in all 15 confirmed cases, the suspect administered anaesthetics and a muscle relaxant without patient consent. The muscle relaxant paralysed respiratory muscles, leading to rapid respiratory failure and death.
In one shocking incident on 8 July 2024, he is believed to have killed two patients in a single day- a 75-year-old man in Kreuzberg, followed hours later by a 76-year-old woman in Neukölln, whose flat he tried but failed to ignite.
In another case, he allegedly pretended to attempt resuscitation on a 56-year-old patient who briefly survived but died in hospital three days later.
Prosecutors allege that Johannes M. had “no motive other than to kill” and are seeking a life sentence.
A disturbing pattern of medical murders
The case has drawn comparisons to Niels Högel, the notorious nurse convicted in 2019 for killing 85 patients, making him Germany’s most infamous serial killer.
It also follows a wave of similar cases:
- In 2023, a 27-year-old nurse was convicted of murdering two patients using unauthorised medication.
- Another nurse is currently on trial in Aachen, accused of administering excessive doses in 26 cases, resulting in 9 deaths.
- Just last week, police revealed an investigation into another doctor suspected of causing multiple elderly deaths in Pinneberg, near Hamburg.
As the trial of Johannes M. begins, German authorities face growing scrutiny over oversight in palliative care and end-of-life practices.
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