Marbella doctor under investigation confesses to injecting colleague with propofol before fatal overdose

The police found the woman's body in a hotel room in Marbella on Thursday, 1 October, after the 66-year-old suspect himself had called them.

The doctor allegedly admitted to having injected her with several vials of propofol, a drug hospitals use as an anaesthetic. He said that she had also administered it to him via an injection, in his case into his right forearm.

Afterwards, both of them allegedly fell asleep. When he woke up, at around 7pm, he noticed that the woman was unresponsive and called the emergency services.

The doctor, who has been released on bail after appearing in court, is under investigation in connection with the nurse's death, as well as for an offence against public health and another of repeated theft. He admitted to the police that he had stolen the medicines from the hospital.

Allegedly after discovering the nurse's body, the doctor rang the National Police to report that the woman had died. The pair had been staying at a hotel in Marbella since midday that day. They had arrived at around 2.20pm, heated up some takeaway food and, after administering propofol to one another, fallen asleep.

When the first patrols arrived, the doctor was waiting for them on a bench outside the hotel. He accompanied them to the room (number 113), where the police saw the woman, who showed no signs of life.

Paramedics then confirmed the death. Given the unusual circumstances surrounding the incident, the judicial commission was the one to remove the body. The leading theory is that she died from drug poisoning, although only the autopsy results can confirm that.

The police carried out a visual inspection of the hotel room. On the bedside table and in the wastebin, they found syringes and two boxes of propofol, apparently containing used vials. Elsewhere in the property and also in the suspect's car, they found a bag containing more medication.

Following his appearance in court, both the public prosecution and the defence requested the suspect's release, while the private prosecutor requested that he be remanded in custody without bail.

After taking into account that it had been the doctor himself who had alerted the emergency services, the court released him. The judge on duty ruled out the possibility that the suspect might abscond or destroy evidence, as the police had already collected all the necessary samples from the hotel room and the car.

The judge ordered his (provisional) release and imposed, as the only precautionary measures, a ban on leaving the country. The suspect's passport has been confiscated.

The investigation is ongoing. According to the police, this could be a case of alleged manslaughter with reckless intent, given that, by virtue of his professional knowledge, the doctor must have been aware of the risks involved in administering the drug outside a hospital setting.

Review the latest crime and judicial news reports