A 40-year-old palliative care doctor in Germany is facing murder charges after allegedly using a combination of powerful drugs to end the lives of at least 15 patients under his care.

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Prosecutors in Berlin say the suspect administered an anaesthetic alongside a muscle relaxant without informing or seeking consent from his patients, a mix that proved deadly. According to investigators, the muscle relaxant “paralysed the respiratory muscles, leading to respiratory arrest and death within minutes”.

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The accused is believed to have killed 12 women and three men between September 2021 and July 2024. Officials fear the number of victims could rise as investigations continue.

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Working across several German states, the doctor is also suspected of setting fires at the homes of some victims to destroy evidence. Prosecutors say he attempted arson in five different cases, allegedly to cover his tracks.

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In one particularly chilling instance, the doctor is accused of killing two patients on the same day in July 2024—first, a 75-year-old man at his residence in central Berlin, followed just hours later by a 76-year-old woman in a nearby district.

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Authorities say he tried to burn the woman’s apartment but failed. “When he noticed this, he reportedly informed a relative of the woman, claiming that he was standing in front of her apartment and that no one had responded to his ringing,” prosecutors said in a statement.

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The victims ranged in age from 25 to 94. The doctor, who remains unnamed due to Germany’s privacy laws, has not confessed to the charges, according to prosecutors.

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Initially arrested in August 2024 on suspicion of killing four people, subsequent investigations and exhumations have revealed additional suspicious deaths. More forensic examinations are expected to follow.

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Prosecutors are calling for a “lifelong professional ban” and “preventative detention” for the accused, who is currently being held in custody.

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