The text messages Lucy Letby sent as she murdered babies

Text messages sent by Lucy Letby successful the hours aft she murdered babies connected a neonatal portion were a cardinal portion of the grounds against her.

They amusement however she messaged colleagues aft she had killed babies, often informing them of the deaths. In turn, she received sympathy and concern.

The texts amusement however she offered to enactment other shifts connected the neonatal intensive therapy portion (ITU). And, arsenic her murders mounted, they besides uncover however Letby reacted arsenic the nett of suspicion closed successful connected her. Here are immoderate of the messages she sent.

To support the identities of the babies, and their parents, each babe has been named by a letter.

The time aft murdering Baby A, Letby messages colleagues saying she doesn't privation to spell backmost into the nursery oregon spot the parents - who besides had different duplicate connected the unit, Baby B.

She attacks Baby B immoderate clip earlier 11 June.

Letby: It was the hardest happening I've ever had to do.

Letby: Just a large daze for america all. Hard coming successful contiguous & seeing the parents x x

She messages 1 of the nurses to accidental she has asked to beryllium assigned to enactment with different baby:

11 June 2015: Three days aft murdering Baby A, she messages a manager of the neonatal unit, offering to enactment much shifts, saying she needs to propulsion herself backmost in:

13 June 2015: Five days aft Baby A's murder, and the time earlier she kills Baby C, Letby has an irritable speech with a workfellow implicit her manager's refusal to fto her spell backmost to enactment successful intensive care.

She says erstwhile she worked astatine Liverpool Women's Hospital, she recovered she needed to spell consecutive backmost and attraction for different babe "otherwise the representation of the 1 you mislaid ne'er goes".

The workfellow disagrees, telling her to instrumentality a break:

Colleague: I hold with her don't deliberation it volition help. You request a interruption from afloat connected ITU... It sounds precise unusual and I would beryllium implicit opposite.

Letby: Forget one said anything, I'll beryllium fine, It's portion of the occupation conscionable don't consciousness similar determination is overmuch squad tone contiguous X

The speech continues into the evening, until 23:09 erstwhile Letby signs disconnected saying "Sleep good xx".

Six minutes later, Baby C falls critically ill.

Letby had been assigned to a kid elsewhere successful the unit, but that nighttime she enters the nursery wherever Baby C is and feeds aerial into his tummy done a nasogastric tube, causing his collapse.

Letby has a substance speech with the aforesaid workfellow she had been speaking to the erstwhile night:

The greeting aft murdering Baby D, Letby sends a connection to a colleague:

Colleague: What!!!! But she was improving. What happened.

Colleague: Wanna chat? I can't judge you were connected again. You having specified a pugnacious time

The speech continues later:

Letby tells different workfellow "what I've seen has truly deed me" but she brushes disconnected the proposition that she should spot a counsellor.

Letby: I can't speech astir it now, I can't halt crying. I conscionable request to get it retired of my system.

30 June 2015: One of the different nurses messages Letby, saying it is unusual that 4 babies person go dangerously unwell wrong a abbreviated play of time.

Nurse: There's thing unusual astir that nighttime and the different 3 that went truthful suddenly.

Letby: Well Baby C was tiny, evidently compromised successful utero. Baby D septic. It's Baby A I can't get my caput around

That morning, 1 of the nurses asks however Letby is and if she had been moving with Baby E - arsenic good arsenic his duplicate brother, Baby F.

Letby: News travels fast. Who told you?

Letby: Yeah I had them both. Was horrible.

Nurse: I conscionable truly consciousness for his parents but for you too. You've had immoderate truly pugnacious times recently

That night, earlier going backmost connected shift, Letby exchanges texts with a workfellow who commiserates, saying "you look to beryllium having immoderate precise atrocious luck".

Letby: Not a batch one tin bash really. He had monolithic haemorrhage could person happened to immoderate babe x

Four days aft attempting to termination Baby F, Letby messages a colleague:

Letby: I said goodbye to Baby F's parents arsenic Baby F mightiness spell tomorrow. They some cried & hugged maine saying they volition ne'er beryllium capable to convey maine for the emotion & attraction I gave to Baby F & for the precious memories I've fixed them. It's heartbreaking

Nurse: It is heartbreaking but you've done your occupation to the highest modular with compassion and professionalism.[...]

Letby: I conscionable consciousness bittersweet that they are thanking maine erstwhile they person mislaid him & for thing that immoderate of america would person done. But it's truly bully to cognize that I got it close for them. That's each I want.

Letby receives a supportive substance from a manager successful the portion and her reply suggests she has been the taxable of disapproval oregon suspicion:

The adjacent time she messages 1 of the different nurses:

Letby: It's each conscionable truthful rubbish lately isn't it. And ever seems to hap astatine nighttime erstwhile little people

Letby: This is what we do, arsenic bittersweet and arsenic hard arsenic it tin be

The adjacent morning, Letby texts a workfellow who is taking over, saying Baby I "deteriorated a batch this morning" and had to beryllium resuscitated.

In the afternoon, she messages the caregiver who is acting arsenic displacement person to inquire if Baby I volition beryllium transferred.

Letby: I'd similar to support her please

The displacement person agrees, but a small implicit an hr aboriginal she messages to accidental she had to reallocate. Letby asks if thing happened.

Shift leader: No. Was conscionable asked to reallocate truthful nary 1 has her for much than 1 nighttime astatine a time.

Baby I died the pursuing week, erstwhile Letby was again connected an overnight shift. She has been recovered blameworthy of her murder.

Over the adjacent fewer months much babies autumn ill. In substance messages, she complains astir understaffing, and volunteers for other shifts - including the displacement wherever she attempts to execution twins, Baby L and Baby M.

In aboriginal June 2016, Letby connects connected Facebook Messenger with a doc astatine the hospital. Their messages amusement a adjacent relationship.

Later that month, she murders Baby O and Baby P.

Letby murders Baby O connected Thursday 23 June. She kills his brother, Baby P, the pursuing day.

A time later, she asks the doc she had been messaging for reassurance aft 1 of the advisor paediatricians, Dr John Gibbs, had been asking questions pursuing different baby's illness and resuscitation.

Letby: Do I request to beryllium disquieted astir what Dr Gibbs was asking?

Doctor: He was asking to marque definite that mean procedures were being carried out.

The speech continues:

The doc offers further reassurance:

Doctor: You are 1 of a fewer nurses crossed the portion (I've worked beauteous overmuch everywhere) that I would spot with my ain children.

6 July 2016: The doc messages Letby giving her details of a gathering which reviewed the deaths of Baby O and Baby P, saying "You request to support this to yourself".

Doctor: There is perfectly thing for you to interest about. Please don't.

Doctor: There are going to beryllium immoderate recommendations based connected staffing / kit but determination was nary disapproval of either resus.

He besides shares an email from neonatal pb advisor Dr Steve Brearey, which mentions that the deaths of Baby O and Baby P volition spell to an inquest.

The adjacent time helium adds: "I cognize you won't accidental thing - this email has to enactment betwixt us, is that ok?"

"Of course," Letby replies. "100%".

15 July 2016: All unit are emailed to accidental they volition person to acquisition a play of objective supervision successful mentation for an outer review.

Staff are told that Letby has agreed to spell first. The adjacent day, she texts a workfellow to accidental she has done a timeline of the twelvemonth to analyse her cases. She says immoderate were earnestly sick erstwhile she took implicit and "some went disconnected wrong hours/on handover".

Letby was archetypal arrested 2 years later, successful July 2018. It took different 5 years for her to beryllium recovered blameworthy of murdering 7 babies and attempting to execution different six.

At the extremity of her 10-month trial, the assemblage recovered her not blameworthy of 2 further charges of attempted execution and was incapable to instrumentality verdicts connected six further charges, besides of attempted murder.

She is the astir prolific kid murderer successful the UK successful modern times.

Names of children and immoderate unit members person been redacted. Some messages person been edited for clarity. Additional reporting by Joseph Lee and Vibeke Venema.