Berlin Palliative Care Physician Admits to Killings in Wiretapped Phone Calls

Wiretapped phone conversations played at the Berlin murder trial of a 41-year-old palliative care physician revealed that the defendant described killing patients as "moral acting with the wrong means" and insisted he was a "good person" for ending their suffering. A criminal investigation officer testified on the 44th day of proceedings at the Landgericht Berlin I that the doctor, who has remained silent throughout the trial, spoke openly to his wife by telephone while in pre-trial detention. The officer said he recalled the content of approximately 25 intercepted conversations. The physician is accused of murdering at least 15 patients — 12 women and 3 men, aged between 67 and 94 — by administering unauthorized lethal drug mixtures in their homes between June 2022 and April 2024.

Doctor told wife he killed in a "well-thought-out" way The investigating officer testified that the defendant told his wife he did not kill "indiscriminately, but rather in a well-thought-out manner," and that he had always conducted preliminary discussions with patients before acting. The doctor described using medications "partly for therapeutic reasons and partly for killing" and spoke of administering an injection to a male patient "so that it would go quickly," using the word euthanasia. In the recordings, he also said he had been killing for a long time, that it gave him no joy, but that it did not shatter him either, and that he would act the same way again. He acknowledged making "many forensic mistakes" and expressed annoyance about them. In one recorded exchange, he said: „I'm just complaining and confessing to killings.” — defendant via Süddeutsche Zeitung The officer noted that the conversations began with affectionate exchanges but grew increasingly strategic over time, with the couple consulting on how to create informed consent forms retrospectively. The defendant stated he was skilled at forging signatures, according to the officer's testimony.

Fires set in 11 cases to conceal the deaths According to the indictment, the physician worked for a mobile palliative care team and carried out the killings during home visits. In 11 of the 15 charged cases, he is alleged to have set fires at the scene to destroy evidence. The investigation was triggered by a fire in an apartment where a 70-year-old woman was found dead, which led authorities to tap the physician's phone and ultimately to his arrest in early August 2024. The public prosecutor's office, represented in part by prosecutor Philipp Meyhöfer, charges the doctor — who holds a doctorate — with murder committed with guile and for other base motives. 15 (victims) — patients charged as murder victims in the indictment Parallel to the ongoing trial, investigations into more than 70 additional cases are underway. A further exhumation is planned in Croatia, where the body of one affected woman was buried, with the grave set to be opened at the end of April for examination.

Trial ongoing, life sentence possible if convicted The trial has been under way since July 2025 and is scheduled to continue until the end of May 2025 according to the court calendar, though proceedings are clearly ongoing into 2026 based on the 44th hearing day. The physician has maintained silence throughout, offering no statement in response to the allegations. If convicted on the murder charges, he faces life imprisonment. The case has drawn attention to the legal and ethical boundaries of palliative care in Germany, where euthanasia and assisted dying remain illegal. The defendant's recorded remarks — that society "was not yet far enough along" and that changes to the law were needed — suggest he framed his actions in terms of a broader argument about end-of-life legislation, though prosecutors characterize the killings as murder for base motives.