He pleads not guilty but prefers to remain silent before the investigator: on Wednesday, anesthetist Frédéric Peschier was charged in Besançon with two new alleged poisonings of patients, and is now suspected of a total of 26 cases, including 10 deaths.
Mr. Peschier, 51, had previously been charged with 24 poisonings, including 9 deaths. He was on “two” new cases on Wednesday, including one fatal, and placed under supporting witness status in a third, prosecutor Etienne Manteau said during a press briefing.
The judge corrected remarks made a little earlier to the press by one of the defense lawyers, Randall Schwerdorfer, who, after interrogation, announced the indictment of his client in “seven” cases and placed him under the status of a witness in another.
– “quack” –
“There was a glitch,” Me Schwerdorfer explained to AFP, admitting a “mistake.” “There were two (new) indictments” and “representation as a witness” in a third case, confirmed the board, which is appealing the two new indictments to the trial chamber of the Besançon Court of Appeal.
According to him, “there are still five cases on which an indictment is provided.” These cases will be examined during future interrogations by Judge Marjolene Poinsart.
Thus, they could further aggravate the case of Frédéric Peschier, who is currently charged with 26 suspected poisonings, including ten deaths.
On Wednesday, the magistrate questioned the practitioner for several hours in light of a new medical counter-examination recently brought to justice, which will be the subject of a defense appeal.
When confronted by the judge, however, Mr. Peschier remained silent, Mr. Schwerdorfer pointed out.
The “paradox”, according to Mr. Manto, surprised that the anesthesiologist, dissatisfied with the fact that he had not been interrogated for a long time, defends “his right to remain silent.”
Frédéric Peschier is suspected of having contaminated the infusion bags of patients in two private clinics in Besançon between 2008 and 2017 in order to cause cardiac arrest and then demonstrate his talents as a resuscitator, as well as to discredit colleagues with whom he had a conflict.
The case began when an anesthesiologist at a clinic in Besançon sounded the alarm after three unexplained cardiac arrests in her patients at full speed.
In January 2017, a judicial inquiry was opened and two months later, Frederic Pescier, who worked at the clinic, was charged and placed under judicial supervision for the first seven cases of alleged poisoning of patients, followed by 17 new cases. in 2019, bringing the number of patients aged four to 80 to 24.
Free under judicial control, Mr. Peschier arrived shortly before 9 o’clock in the morning, together with Me Schwerdorfer, at the judicial court of Besançon. An imposing physique, with a gray beard and a covered face, he burst into the court without any comment.
– “Proven” –
That day marked the beginning of a long series of interrogations before the judge: eight more days were originally planned during March to summarize all the indictments in this extraordinary case.
However, at the end of that first hearing, the interrogations were adjourned “until March 22,” according to Me Schwerdorfer. According to Mr. Manteau, because of Mr. Peschier’s silence, the judge was able to complete her first three days of hearings in one day.
Frédéric Peschier, who lives in Vienna, recently witnessed the facilitation of the trial and is now able to return to Doubs to see his family.
However, a recent order from the investigating judge forbids him from practicing medicine, and the defense will challenge that decision, Me Schwerdorfer explained, referring to the “very frail” and “very experienced” Frédéric Peschier.
Pointing to the “accusatory” indication, the criminal lawyer also questioned the “partiality” of the investigating judge in the case, which, according to him, is based only on “intellectual constructs.”