The greatest post-war serial killer for German courts

This is the biggest murder case in Germany since the Second World War. Nurse Niels Högel is in Oldenburg, Germany for the murder of a hundred patients. Previously, Högel had been sentenced to life imprisonment for two murders and two attempts of manslaughter

from 1999 to 2005 as a nurse in two hospitals in Delmenhorst and Oldenburg, in Germany. State of Lower Saxony. He injected Gilurytal with at least 100 patients, a drug that can cause serious cardiac arrhythmia and a sudden drop in blood pressure. He hoped to be celebrated as a saving angel if the resuscitation ended.

Högel could continue for years in hospitals. It was only in 2005 that he hit the lamp. He was caught red-handed when he injected Gilurytal with a patient who did not need it. Three years later, he was sentenced to seven years in prison for this case. There were already indications that Högel had made more casualties.

"Stop counting"

In 2014, the case was reopened at the insistence of one of the families who had questioned the death of his mother. A research committee named "Kardio" was to check the corridors of Högels. A number of bodies were exhumed and colleagues from Högel were interrogated. In 2015, this led to a conviction for two murders and attempted manslaughter. Högel has a lifetime. But during the trial, it became apparent that the nurse would probably do more victims.

Högel boasted about his actions against his fellow prisoners. He would certainly have killed fifty people, after which he "stopped counting". But not only did his confession confirm that it was a very big problem. More than one hundred Högel patient bodies have been exhumed in the last three years. In many cases, the drug Gilurytal has been found.

More than 120 surviving relatives are the prosecutors in the case against Högel. They hope to obtain clarification on the facts and the motive of his actions. The next question is just as important: how come it can go on for so long? There were already a lot of signs that something was wrong. He was so often involved in resuscitation that he was nicknamed "Rettungsrambo".

Loving Recommendation

Already in 2001, his colleagues at Delmenhorst indicated that they did not trust Högel. A remarkable number of people died while he was on duty, but nothing was done. When he went to the hospital in Oldenburg, he even received a favorable recommendation.

An investigation was opened into four hospital employees where Högel worked. This case will only begin after a possible conviction of Högel, so that he can testify himself. In the meantime, several measures have been introduced in hospitals. At autopsies, a second check is always done and an anonymous whistleblower system has been set up.