A French doctor who is being investigated for poisoning 7 patients is now also suspected of a further 17 cases. One of his lawyers has confirmed that the 47-year-old anesthesiologist may now be prosecuted for 24 cases, 9 of which were fatal.
Frederic Pechier, who is conditionally free, worked in two private clinics in Besancon. The victims suffered cardiac arrest during a surgical procedure and some were unable to resuscitate. The Public Prosecution Service questioned the narcotist this week for a further 66 cases of cardiac arrest on the operating table, while the risk to patients was considered low.
Overdose
The prosecutor went through 17 cases. According to him, the suspicious anesthetist was the “common denominator” in all operations during a period when he was in trouble with a colleague. “He was always around when something unexpected happened, always made a quick diagnosis and said what to do, even when there was absolutely no reason to think of an overdose of potassium or a local anesthetic,” the OM said.
According to the French AFP news agency, a source close to the investigation reported that the specialist created emergency situations in which he could intervene and demonstrate his resuscitation talent.
The doctor’s lawyer denies all allegations.
