Prosecutors in the northern Italian city of Forlì are investigating an ambulance driver on suspicion of murdering five elderly patients.
All of the suspicious deaths occurred while or shortly after the patients were being transported in an ambulance driven by the 27-year-old man, the victims’ lawyers told The Guardian.
Sources in the investigation told state news agency ANSA that they believe the man, who worked for the Italian Red Cross but has now been suspended, may have administered harmful substances to patients during transfers between hospitals and nursing homes in the Emilia-Romagna region.
Authorities are also examining additional cases, raising concerns that the number of potential victims could rise as the investigation expands.
The most recent case being investigated is that of an 85-year-old woman who died of cardiac arrest in November 2025.
All patients suffered cardiac arrests while being transported in the ambulance operated in Forlimpopoli, near Forlì. One died on the way, the others shortly after or in the following days.
For months, none of the relatives (most of whom believed their loved ones had been seriously ill) expressed concern. Suspicions reportedly did not begin until the family of one of the victims requested an autopsy.
“It is important to emphasize that these are not ordinary ambulances with sirens blaring to warn patients to rush to the hospital,” said Max Starni and Massimo Mambelli, lawyers representing the family of the patient, who died in November.
They added: “These ambulances are generally used for routine transport… for example, to take patients from a nursing home to the hospital for an appointment. This is why there are only two drivers on board and no nurses.”
In the case Starni and Mambelli are handling, the elderly woman was on her way from a nursing home to a physical therapy session when she died in the ambulance.
Prosecutors have placed the driver under investigation on suspicion of aggravated murder, alleging premeditation and use of poisonous substances or other insidious means. He has not been arrested or taken into custody.
The local section of the Italian Red Cross was notified of the investigation four days ago and the driver was suspended from duty.
In a statement, the organization said it had “received with surprise the information about the involvement of one of our operators in a serious criminal matter,” and expressed its hope that the investigation will shed light on what it described as a tragic episode “completely unrelated to the mission of our association in Italy and in the world, and to the work of the 150,000 volunteers who support those in need every day.”
The suspect’s lawyer, Gloria Parigi, told La Repubblica that her client denied the allegations and was “deeply shocked.” He was immediately made available to prosecutors, he added.
“We’re talking about older people who were terminally ill,” Parigi said. “Only one died in the ambulance; the others died in the following days, in one case up to 13 days after the transfer. All five suffered respiratory crises during the trip, but on each occasion a medical response vehicle intervened.”
