Male Killer Nurse Is Suspect in Over 84 Additional Murders, Authorities Say

Male Killer Nurse Is Suspect in Over 84 Additional Murders, Authorities Say
German former male nurse Niels H hides his face behind a folder as he waits next to his lawyer Ulrike Baumann (L) for the opening of another session of his trial on February 26, 2015 at court in Oldenburg, northwestern Germany. CARMEN JASPERSEN/AFP/Getty Images
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A nurse who was jailed for the murder of two patients is suspected of killing at least 84 more people, authorities said on Monday, Aug. 28. 

The 40-year-old male nurse identified only as Niels H. under German reporting rules was convicted of attempted murder using lethal drug overdoses back in 2006 and 2015 when he worked in a clinic in Germany, BBC reported. 

Already serving a life sentence, relatives of the patients who died in the clinic Niels worked at urged police to keep investigating. 

If health authorities acted more sharply to any suspicions at the clinic, many of the deaths could have been stopped said Johann Kuehme, police chief in the northwestern city of Oldenburg, ABC reported. 

The additional crimes were found when authorities investigated hundreds of former patients found buried in Delmenhorst and nearby Oldenburg. But the number of actual killings could likely be higher because not all victims were buried, some could have been cremated, making it impossible to gather physical evidence, the chief added. 

German former male nurse Niels H (L) waits next to his lawyer Ulrike Baumann (2nd L) for the opening of another session of his trial on Feb. 26, 2015, at court in Oldenburg, northwestern Germany. (Carmen Jaspersen/AFP/Getty Images)
German former male nurse Niels H (L) waits next to his lawyer Ulrike Baumann (2nd L) for the opening of another session of his trial on Feb. 26, 2015, at court in Oldenburg, northwestern Germany. Carmen Jaspersen/AFP/Getty Images