German Doctor Stands Trial for Allegedly Killing 15 Patients

A German doctor accused of murdering 15 patients with fatal drug injections appeared in court on Monday, as prosecutors described him as someone who acted like a “master of life and death.”

The 40-year-old palliative care specialist, identified by German media as Johannes M., is facing charges for the deaths of 12 women and three men, which allegedly took place between September 2021 and July 2024 while he was working in Berlin.

Prosecutors allege that the victims, aged between 25 and 94, were administered lethal doses of sedatives, and in some cases, their homes were set on fire in what investigators say was an attempt to destroy evidence.

At the Berlin state court, prosecutor Philipp Meyhoefer told the court that the accused visited his patients “under the pretext of providing medical care.” He added, “He acted with disregard for life… and behaved as the master of life and death.”

Meyhoefer said the doctor had premeditated the killings, organising house calls with the intent to murder and using his position of trust as a medical professional to carry out the acts.

Concerns about Johannes M. first surfaced in July last year when a co-worker raised suspicions over the high number of patient deaths involving house fires. He was arrested the following month, initially linked to four deaths. Further investigations revealed more cases, and by April 2025, prosecutors had filed charges in 15 separate murders.

Authorities said an additional 96 deaths are still under investigation, including that of his mother-in-law, who died from cancer during a visit to Poland in early 2024. Her death is now considered suspicious.

Reports indicate that Johannes M. was previously trained as a radiologist and general practitioner before specialising in palliative care. In 2013, he submitted a doctoral thesis examining the psychology of serial killers, beginning with the question: “Why do people kill?”

According to the charges, the doctor administered a combination of anaesthetics and muscle relaxants “without their knowledge or consent.” The muscle relaxant, prosecutors said, “paralysed the respiratory muscles, leading to respiratory arrest and death within minutes.”

In five of the cases, Johannes M. is accused of setting fire to the victims’ homes after administering the injections. On one particularly chilling day—July 8, 2024—he allegedly murdered two patients within hours of each other: a 75-year-old man in Kreuzberg in the morning, followed by a 76-year-old woman in Neukoelln later that day.

Prosecutors said he attempted to burn the woman’s apartment but the fire failed. “When he realised this, he allegedly informed a relative of the woman and claimed that he was standing in front of her flat and that nobody was answering the doorbell,” they said.

In another case, Johannes M. is said to have falsely claimed he had begun CPR on a 56-year-old woman. Although she was initially revived, she died three days later in the hospital.

Prosecutors allege that he had “no motive beyond killing” and are seeking a life sentence. A total of 35 court hearings have been scheduled, with proceedings expected to last until early 2026.

The case echoes that of former nurse Niels Hoegel, who was sentenced to life in 2019 for murdering 85 patients with lethal injections, making him one of Germany’s most notorious serial killers.

In recent years, Germany has seen a troubling rise in similar cases. In 2023, a 27-year-old nurse received a life sentence for killing two patients, while another nurse is currently on trial in Aachen over the deaths of nine people. Just last week, authorities announced they are investigating yet another doctor suspected of killing elderly patients in the northern town of Pinneberg, near Hamburg.