UK police open investigation into killer nurse's hospital

[October 04, 2023]  LONDON (Reuters) - British police said on Wednesday they had opened an investigation into corporate manslaughter at the hospital where nurse Lucy Letby, who murdered seven babies, had worked.

Letby, 33, Britain's most prolific serial child killer of modern times, was convicted in August of killing five baby boys and two baby girls at the Countess of Chester hospital in northern England and attacking six others in 2015 and 2016. 

Members of the media work near a large screen showing a picture of convicted hospital nurse Lucy Letby, ahead of her sentencing, outside the Manchester Crown Court, in Manchester, Britain, August 21, 2023. REUTERS/Phil Noble/File Photo

She has been jailed for life and told she would never be released.

Cheshire Police said they had now opened an investigation into the hospital itself.

"The investigation will focus on the indictment period of the charges for Lucy Letby, from June 2015 to June 2016, and consider areas including senior leadership and decision making to determine whether any criminality has taken place," Detective Superintendent Simon Blackwell said.

"At this stage we are not investigating any individuals in relation to gross negligence manslaughter."

After Letby's conviction, the government said it would hold an inquiry into the case amid accusations from senior doctors that concerns about the nurse were not heeded by hospital bosses.

Last month, prosecutors said they face a re-trial over an accusation she had tried to kill another new born, a charge on which the original jury could not agree a verdict.

Letby has submitted an application seeking permission to appeal against her convictions.

(Reporting by Michael Holden; Editing by Toby Chopra)

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