Lucy Letby boss 'stunned' killer nurse's colleagues with 7-word warning

Following a string of complaints about 's 'strange' behaviour, she was forced to leave her hospital ward.

Years before she was found guilty of murdering innocent babies in her care at Countess of Chester Hospital, she had earned a reputation among her fellow nurses and doctors as the 'angel of death' and ' on the unit'. Former nurse Letby, 34, , was struck off from the neonatal unit back in July 2016 after concerns were raised that she may have been harming babies in the aftermath of several unexplained deaths and collapses.

Six months later, an external review found no evidence of criminality and Letby's grievance procedure over her removal was upheld. She sent her colleagues an email ahead of her planned return, saying she had been cleared of any wrongdoing and asked them to be 'sensitive and supportive'.

Tony Chambers told consultants to "draw a line under the Lucy issue". He ordered the doctors to apologise to the killer for their derogatory remarks, the Thirlwall Inquiry into events surrounding Letby's crimes has heard.

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But nurses were left 'stunned' over the ordeal, as they claimed they had been left in the dark about the allegations, with some believing she had in fact been on a secondment. On January 31, 2017, Letby sent a group email to neonatal nurses in which she wrote: "Dear colleagues, I was redeployed from the unit in July 2016 following serious and distressing allegations of a personal and professional nature made by some members of the medical team.

"From then until now I have been unable to visit or contact the unit whilst these matters were investigated. After a thorough investigation it was established that all the allegations were unfounded and untrue, and therefore I have been fully exonerated. I have received a full apology from the trust.

"As you can imagine this whole episode has been distressing for me and my family. I will begin my return to the unit in the coming weeks. I will need colleagues to be sensitive and supportive at this time. Many thanks, Lucy Letby."

Speaking at the inquiry about the email, nurse Kathryn Percival-Calderbank said: "We were not informed about anything. We didn't know what these allegations had been so we were a bit stunned by it all really because we were still under the impression she was on secondment."

She said Mr Chambers told them to "be nice to Lucy" on her return. Ms Percival-Calderbank said: "A lot of the staff were taken into a room. It took us by surprise that we had to be nice to Lucy because none of us had ever been horrible to her. That’s not in our nature."

Meanwhile, nurse Melanie Taylor told the inquiry that parts of Letby's personality were a "little strange". Giving evidence last Thursday, she said: "I do remember her coming on to a shift to tell me about a baby that had died. It was almost in a way where she was excited to tell me, almost like in a gossipy manner."

Counsel to the inquiry Rachel Langdale KC asked: "Did it strike you at the time as unusual?" Ms Taylor said: "Yes it did. There were parts of her personality that were a little strange to me.

"I didn't have any suspicions about any of this … that didn't cross my mind. I personally didn't have any concerns with her nursing care but her way of speaking to other members of staff, I didn't like. I felt it was not the most professional." Ms Taylor said staff had noted Letby appeared to be present at a lot of deaths.

She said: "My personal feeling and from what I heard from other staff was that it was really unfortunate she had been there for so many tragic events. I think it's an unthinkable thing. It's just such an unbelievable situation that somebody would do that, especially someone you work with. At the time I would have thought there would be signs of that."

The inquiry heard the consultants persisted with their concerns and Letby's return to the unit from clerical duties was postponed until hospital bosses eventually called in Cheshire Police in May 2017. Former chief executive of the Countess of Chester, Tony Chambers, stepped down after police launched an inquiry into the baby deaths at the hospital.

The former nurse became Britain's most prolific child killer in August 2023 when she was at the Countess of Chester Hospital between 2015 and 2016. In July, Letby was handed her 15th whole-life term for the attempted murder of a .

Following Letby's guilty verdict, Mr Chambers said he was 'deeply saddened' by the baby deaths, adding: "All my thoughts are with the children at the heart of this case and their families and loved ones at this incredibly difficult time. I am truly sorry for what all the families have gone through."

The inquiry, chaired by Lady Justice Thirlwall, is expected to sit at Liverpool Town Hall until early next year, with findings published by late autumn 2025.

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