Frédéric Péchier goes on trial in Besançon over suspected poisonings at two clinics

# Frédéric Péchier goes on trial in Besançon over suspected poisonings at two clinics

A former French anaesthetist has gone on trial in eastern France accused of intentionally poisoning 30 patients, 12 of them fatally, in a case that has drawn attention to one of the country's most unsettling medical investigations.

Péchier, 53, has denied there is any proof of poisoning. He told French radio there was "no proof of any poisoning" and said the trial would let him put "all the cards on the table". He has remained at liberty under judicial supervision while the case moved through the courts.

The trial in Besançon is expected to last more than three months and involves more than 150 civil parties representing the alleged victims. Prosecutors say the pattern of emergencies across two clinics points to a single common factor: Péchier himself. They allege he tampered with intravenous medicines to trigger cardiac arrests, and that the motive was revenge against colleagues.

The allegations date back to 2008 and span the Franche-Comté Polyclinic and the Saint-Vincent Clinic, where Péchier worked. Investigators first focused on him after a 2017 emergency involving Sandra Simard, a healthy 36-year-old who suffered a cardiac arrest during spinal surgery. According to the BBC account, an injection from Péchier followed, and the patient went into a coma but survived. Tests on intravenous drugs later showed potassium at 100 times the expected dose.

A second incident, days later, raised further alarms. Péchier said he had discovered tampered paracetamol bags after anaesthetising a 70-year-old man and maintained he was being framed. Prosecutors then began examining other serious adverse events dating back years. The BBC says the victims ranged in age from four to 89.

Among the deaths under scrutiny is that of Damien Iehlen, who died in 2008 after a cardiac arrest during a routine kidney procedure. He was 53. The BBC reported that later tests found he had been given a potentially lethal dose of lidocaine. His family described the effect as devastating.

Police and prosecutors say the investigation has uncovered a series of suspicious cases that could not be explained by chance. Twelve suspicious cases were found involving patients who could not be resuscitated, including several unexplained deaths, according to the BBC report. Péchier's family background also became part of the public profile of the case, with the report noting that his father was also an anaesthetist.

The trial now moves into evidence and testimony that will test years of forensic work and witness accounts. Péchier faces life imprisonment if convicted. For the families involved, the case is not only about criminal liability but about why a hospital setting that should have been safe became the centre of allegations spanning nearly a decade.

The hearing is set to run until December, with the defendant remaining free under judicial supervision while the court examines the evidence.