OTTAWA, Oct 25 (Reuters) - A Canadian nurse was charged on Tuesday with using drugs to murder eight elderly patients at two long-term care facilities in the province of Ontario, police said.
Elizabeth Wettlaufer, 49, is accused of killing five women and three men in the towns of Woodstock and London between 2007 and 2014. The dead ranged in age from 75 to 96 years old.
Wettlaufer appeared in court on Tuesday and was remanded in custody.
Woodstock Police Chief William Renton said officers began investigating after receiving a tip. He declined to speculate on a motive.
"This investigation is now being treated as a multiple homicide. Eight victims have been identified to date," he told a televised news conference.
"We are confident at this time that all of the victims have been identified," he said.
The criminal case is the largest in Ontario since 2006, when five men were charged with murdering eight members of a biker gang. They were convicted in 2009 and sentenced to life in prison.