Two days after Elizabeth Wettlaufer’s first court appearance, two very different narratives are emerging about the life of the woman accused of killing eight elderly patients at long-term care homes.
Family members of some of Wettlaufer’s alleged victims have said that, according to police, their loved ones were targeted because they “pissed Wettlaufer off.”
Police have said publicly that they believe Wettlaufer killed nursing home residents by giving them drugs. Family members say police have been more specific with them – claiming that their relatives died because they were given an overdose of insulin.
Seven of the eight people Wettlaufer is alleged to have killed were residents at the Caressant Care facility in Woodstock. The eighth lived at a long-term care home in London.
An anonymous letter left on a CTV News vehicle parked outside the home in Woodstock suggests that Wettlaufer had a “long list of disciplines” and medical errors – including “several” relating to insulin – and was never fired over those issues.
Those descriptions are at odds with what some of the 49-year-old’s former coworkers say about her.
“She was professional, kind, and good to the families ,” said Janette Langfield, describing Wettlaufer as “an everyday person who loved her parents and her dog.”
Officials with Caressant Care say Wettlaufer’s employment with their company ended more than two years ago, but have so far declined to provide further details.
Another nurse who worked with Wettlaufer, Rosalynd Sim, said that she never heard why Wettlaufer left the company, other than some vague allusions to “performance issues.”
“I didn’t know any specific details of them,” she said.
Neighbours and friends have described Wettlaufer as a person who seemed to be friendly, but was struggling with substance abuse.
None of the allegations against Wettlaufer have been tested in court.
