Nurse Raped Dying Patient - Court Cuts Sentence Because He Got Fired

SWEDEN - A nurse who raped an unconscious, dying woman in her 70s on a night shift at a Swedish hospital has been sentenced to five years and eight months in prison.

But the court cut his sentence. The reason: he lost his job because of the crime.

Andreas Viktor Nord, 41, attacked the woman at Ryhov County Hospital in Jönköping, southern Sweden, on August 8 this year. She was receiving end-of-life palliative care and was completely unable to defend herself.

When a colleague suddenly appeared in the doorway, he panicked, admitted that it was "stupid" and asked her to call the police.

During the emergency call, he said he could not live with what he had done. Then he drove off from the hospital.

Police gave chase. At a roundabout in Jönköping, Nord swerved off the road and crashed his car into a concrete foundation.

READ MORE: 21 Convicted Criminals Working in Swedish City's Elderly Care

The woman died less than six hours after the attack. A forensic examination later concluded that her death was caused by her underlying illness and that the assault did not hasten it.

In police interviews, Nord admitted sexual acts against the woman but claimed it was sexual assault, not rape. He also described himself as a "psychopath".

Convicted of aggravated rape

On November 9, Jönköping District Court convicted Nord of aggravated rape and gross reckless driving.

The court found that the attack on a completely defenceless person in the final stage of her life was in itself a very serious aggravating circumstance.

It also ruled that Nord abused the special trust that came with his job as a nurse, showed great ruthlessness and deliberately exploited the woman's helplessness.

Sentence cut because he was fired

The minimum sentence for aggravated rape in Sweden is five years. The court said the crime merited more than that, and put the combined penalty value at around six years.

But Swedish law lets courts reduce a sentence if the offender has suffered other consequences of the crime. The district court decided to take into account that Nord had been fired - even though he committed the rape while on duty.

The final sentence landed at five years and eight months.

The case adds to a string of scandals in Swedish health and elderly care, where vulnerable patients have been abused by the very staff meant to care for them.