Hospital patient who switched off roommate's ventilator because the noise annoyed her charged with attempted murder
2 December 2022, 13:46 | Updated: 2 December 2022, 14:35
An elderly woman has been arrested in a German hospital after turning off another patient’s ventilator twice.
Police and prosecutors said in a statement that the suspect, 72, is alleged to have switched off a 79-year-old woman's ventilator and, despite then being told by staff that it was vital for the patient, switched it off again later in the evening.
The older patient had to be revived and, while her life is not in danger, still requires intensive care, authorities said.
The 79-year-old bed-bound neighbour was dependent on the oxygen supply, police and prosecutors in Mannheim, Germany, said on Thursday.
The suspect was brought before a judge on Wednesday and taken to jail.
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A joint press release from the Mannheim police and public prosecutor’s office said the woman switched off the ventilator at an unspecified time before 8pm after becoming ‘disturbed by the noise coming from the oxygen device’.
Despite being informed by the hospital staff that the oxygen supply was a vital measure, she is said to have ignored their warnings and switched the device off again at around 9pm.
Following the incident, the suspect was issued with an arrest warrant and brought before a judge at the district court in Mannheim on Wednesday, where she was taken to jail.
Investigations are ongoing.
