Lucy Letby is on trial for the alleged murder of seven babies and attempted murder of 10 others (Picture: Chester Standard/SWNS)
A nurse accused of being a ‘poisoner at work’ allegedly attacked a baby four times before eventually killing them.
Lucy Letby is charged with harming 17 babies, seven of whom died, at the neo-natal unit of the Countess of Chester Hospital in the 12 months up to June 2016.
The 32-year-old from Hereford was described as a ‘constant malevolent presence’ on the ward by prosecutors as they began detailing their case against her.
One baby known only as Child I was attacked by the nurse on four occasions, the prosecution claims, and eventually succumbed despite being ‘resilient’.
It was described in court as ‘an extreme example even by the standards of this case’.
It is said Ms Letby injected air into Child I’s stomach through a nasogastric tube – the first incident said to have been just days after attempting to murder another child.
The court heard how a colleague claimed she was standing in the doorway of a darkened room in the neo-natal unit when the defendant remarked that Child I looked pale.
When the fellow nurse turned on the light, she saw that Child I ‘appeared to be at the point of death and was not breathing’.
Mr Johnson invited jurors to wonder how Ms Letby could make the observation of Child I’s appearance by looking into a darkened room.
The 32-year-old nurse, who denies all charges against her, is present in court to hear the allegations read out
The jury also heard allegations this morning that Ms Letby attempted to kill another baby – known only as Child H – on two successive evenings.
H was born prematurely and suffered a series of medical problems over the first six days of their life, including two ‘profound’ collapses which it’s alleged the nurse was responsible for.
No cause could be identified for these episodes at the time and both required dramatic interventions like CPR and adrenaline.
The baby showed ‘dramatic improvement’ when transferred to another hospital before she later returned to the Countess of Chester and was eventually discharged.
Mr Johnson said: ‘It is a notable fact in the case of (Child H) and others that as soon as children were removed from the Countess of Chester and the sphere of influence of Lucy Letby, it was often followed by their sudden and remarkable recovery.’
The jury has now heard details of eight of the 17 children Ms Letby is alleged to have murdered or attempted to murder.
The nurses house was searched by police after she was arrested on suspicion of the offences (Picture: PA)
Prosecutors claim she told the mother of premature twin boys ‘trust me, I’m a nurse’ when she found one child ‘distressed’ and bleeding from the mouth while in Ms Letby’s care, Manchester Crown Court heard yesterday.
It’s alleged the nurse was attacking the baby – known only as child E – and that they went onto suffer a bleed described by one registrar as the largest they’d ever seen in an infant.
Ms Letby is accused of making ‘fraudulent’ nursing notes which were ‘false, misleading and designed to cover her tracks’.
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A day later, prosecutors claim Ms Letby tried to kill his twin brother, child F, using poison for the first time by injecting a fluid bag with insulin.
As with others aired earlier in the prosecution’s case, Ms Letby allegedly showed a ‘very unusual interests’ in the twins’ family by searching for them on social media on numerous occasions, including Christmas Day.
She denies all charges against her. The trial continues.
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Lucy Letby is accused of killing or attempting to kill 17 babies on a neo-natal ward.