A former nurse in Pennsylvania has admitted to murdering 17 patients and trying to kill 19 more by injecting them with excessive doses of insulin, according to the state’s attorney general.
Heather Pressdee, 39, confessed to targeting patients at five different rehabilitation centers since 2020. She usually acted during overnight shifts when there was less supervision and delayed hospitalization. The victims ranged in age from 43 to 104.
“This is a disturbing and horrific case of someone who was supposed to care for our most vulnerable seniors, but instead preyed on them,” Attorney General Josh Shapiro said in a statement on Tuesday.
Pressdee faces a total of 36 counts of criminal homicide, aggravated assault, and other charges. She was arrested on October 31 after a joint investigation by the attorney general’s office, the Pennsylvania State Police, and local authorities.
The investigation began in August when a patient at the Abington Manor Rehabilitation Center in Clarks Summit died of hypoglycemia, a condition caused by low blood sugar levels. The patient had no history of diabetes or insulin use. An autopsy revealed that the patient had been injected with a lethal dose of insulin.
The investigators then discovered that Pressdee had worked at the facility and had access to the patient’s room. They also found that Pressdee had worked at four other rehabilitation centers in the state and that there had been several suspicious deaths and injuries of patients under her care.
Pressdee was interviewed by the investigators on October 30 and confessed to her crimes. She said she knew what she was doing was wrong and that she was sorry for what she had done.
“She said she did it because she was depressed and unhappy with her life,” Shapiro said.
She also said she chose her victims based on their age, medical condition, and whether they had family members to visit them.
“She said she wanted to end their suffering and give them a peaceful death,” Shapiro said.
Shapiro said that Pressdee’s motive was not financial or personal, but rather “a twisted sense of mercy.”
He said that Pressdee’s case was one of the worst examples of serial killing in the state’s history and that he would seek justice for the victims and their families.
Pressdee is being held without bail at the Lackawanna County Prison. She has not entered a plea yet and her lawyer has not commented on the case.
Relevant articles:
– Former nurse Heather Pressdee now linked to 17 nursing home deaths, ABC News, November 2, 2023
– Depraved nurse allegedly confessed to trying to kill 19 nursing home patients, Fox News, November 3, 2023
– Nurse accused of killing 17 patients handed new charges, Yahoo News, November 3, 2023
– Nurse faces additional charges after admitting she tried to kill 19 other patients, Pennsylvania AG says, MSN News, November 3, 2023