Brilliant doctor unjustly accused or serial killer with an enigmatic motive? An anesthesiologist prosecuted for 30 poisonings of patients during operations, including 12 fatalities, is preparing to be tried in France in a lengthy trial.

More than three months of hearings are planned, 55 victims' lawyers, 150 civil parties... The case for which Frédéric Péchier will appear before the Doubs Assize Court in Besançon (east) from September 8 is presented as "without equivalent in French judicial annals" by prosecutor Etienne Manteaux during his request for postponement.

"He is accused of poisoning healthy patients," according to the magistrate, who insists that the facts had "nothing to do with euthanasia."

Placed under judicial supervision since the beginning of the case, Frédéric Péchier, 53, will appear free and faces life imprisonment. He has never stopped pleading his innocence and his lawyers intend to seek his acquittal.

The 30 victims, whose IV bags he is suspected of having contaminated during operations, were aged between 4 and 89 at the time of the events, which occurred between 2008 and 2017 in two private clinics in Besançon.

- "Common denominator" -

The case began in January 2017, after a 36-year-old woman suffered a suspected cardiac arrest during surgery. A potentially lethal dose of potassium was discovered in a bag of saline used for her anesthesia. Dr. Péchier was quickly suspected, arrested, and charged two months later.

After seven years of studying more than 70 significant and unexpected problems that occurred during medical procedures, investigators selected 30 cases of patients who suffered cardiac arrest during surgery. Twelve did not survive despite resuscitation attempts.

For the prosecution, Frédéric Péchier is the "common denominator" between all the cases.

His modus operandi was to discreetly introduce potassium or local anesthetics into bags of rehydration solutions or paracetamol used for operations, at potentially lethal doses.

As for his motive, it remains unclear. Investigators have suggested the possibility of a "firefighter-arsonist" poisoning his colleagues' patients to revive them and demonstrate his talents. Other scenarios considered include a desire to harm colleagues with whom he was in conflict, or a search for adrenaline by a doctor who was bored with his work.

- "Free" poisonings -

This father of three, himself the son of an anesthesiologist and a nurse, married to a cardiologist, enjoyed a flattering reputation before the affair, described as competent, passionate, and conscientious. To the point of always being the first at the clinic in the morning—which, according to investigators, allowed him to pollute pockets without being seen.

However, he suffered from depression and some colleagues saw him as an arrogant, even manipulative man.

The victims "expect a lot from the judicial clarification of this case," notes one of their lawyers, Frédéric Berna, who is skeptical about possible "sincere and loyal explanations from Dr. Péchier."

"These are purely gratuitous poisonings of victims who have nothing to do with him, who have never done anything," insists the lawyer, who describes a "dizzying case" due to "its scale, duration and technical complexity."

The defense, on the other hand, disputes the reality of most of the poisonings, with Frédéric Péchier maintaining that the majority of the cases retained resulted from "medical errors" by his colleagues.

His lawyers denounce "an ideal culprit, created by the prosecution, but when you look at it point by point, it doesn't hold up and we will demonstrate this in court." Frédéric Péchier "is as combative as possible" and "he has the firm intention of demonstrating his innocence in this case," they assure AFP.