Tip from hospital led to probe
TORONTO — The investigation into the alleged murders of eight residents in nursing homes was launched after police received a tip from a psychiatric hospital, The Canadian Press has learned.
Officials from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health alerted Toronto police that Elizabeth Wettlaufer, a nurse from Woodstock, Ont., had provided information to hospital staff that caused them “concern,” a police source familiar with the investigation said.
Wettlaufer, 49, was charged Tuesday with eight counts of first-degree murder in the deaths of elderly residents at two longterm nursing homes in Woodstock, Ont., and London, Ont., over a seven-year period.
Since the alleged crimes occurred outside of Toronto police’s jurisdiction, the source said officers told three other forces, including the Ontario Provincial Police. The investigation into the alleged murders was launched on Sept. 29.
Police have not said what drug was used in the deaths of the eight people.
Wettlaufer was put under a peace bond on Oct. 6 — and one condition was a ban on possessing insulin or other medication.
Wettlaufer was kept on a tight leash by police after signing the bond. She wasn’t allowed to leave Oxford County unless she notified police 24 hours in advance with a full itinerary. She was allowed to live only at her apartment or with her parents, be at home between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m., and come to the door within five minutes if the cops knocked.
Wettlaufer was not allowed to possess or consume alcohol. She was not allowed to work or volunteer as a caregiver, and was not allowed to go into any nursing home, long-term care facility, retirement home or hospital unless seeking medical attention for herself.
The victims have been identified as James Silcox, 84, Maurice Granat, 84, Gladys Millard, 87, Helen Matheson, 95, Mary Zurawinski, 96, Helen Young, 90, Maureen Pickering, 79, and Arpad Horvath, 75.
Police say they are confident there are no more alleged victims in the case.
While OPP investigators are still probing the circumstances surrounding the deaths and have encouraged anyone concerned about a loved one in care to contact police, evidence suggests there will be no more homicide charges in the case.
“We are confident that there are no more,” OPP Sgt. Dave Rektor said Wednesday.
“We take every call seriously, but ... not everyone is going to be a victim,” he said of the deaths that occurred at Woodstock’s Carressant Care nursing home from 2007 to 2014.
Wettlaufer is accused of killing seven residents of that home and one resident of London’s Meadow Park, in 2014. The London resident, Horvath, had dementia, as did some of the others.
Lawyers for Wettlaufer could not be reached immediately for comment.
A friend of Wettlaufer, Nancy Gilbert, told the Canadian Press that Wettlaufer had told her she recently completed her second stint in rehab in Toronto and seemed to be in good spirits.
A Facebook page for a Bethe Wettlaufer, whose photo, education and employment records match that of Elizabeth Wettlaufer, makes reference to what appears to be a struggle with substance abuse.
“My own voice called to me in the darkness. Others hands lifted me when I chose the light. One year ago today I woke up not dead. 365 days clean and sober,” says a post from September 2015.
CAMH declined to comment, saying it does not disclose information about clients because of patient confidentiality.
While health-care professionals are generally bound by confidentiality requirements, they are obliged in some cases to contact police or other authorities without a patient’s consent, such as in cases where they believe a death is suspicious or other important interests are at stake.
Ontario law mandates that doctors must contact authorities if they have reasonable grounds to suspect that a resident of a nursing or retirement home has suffered harm or is at risk of harm as a result of “improper or incompetent treatment or care, unlawful conduct, abuse or neglect.”
“Physicians have a legal and professional obligation to maintain the confidentiality of patient information,” Ontario’s doctor licensing body says. “There are circumstances, however, where physicians are either required or permitted to report particular events or clinical conditions to the appropriate government or regulatory agency.”
Wettlaufer is scheduled to appear in court by video on Nov. 2.