Lucy Letby's request to colleagues in pitiful email to 'stunned' nurses

Lucy Letby, who was convicted of murdering seven babies and the attempted murder of three others, was "fully exonerated" of any wrongdoing before her murder trial and returned to her ward

Lucy Letby, who was later found guilty of a series of infant murders at the Countess of Chester Hospital, had been removed from her position in the neonatal unit back in July 2016 due to concerns raised by consultant paediatricians. They suspected she might be causing harm to babies following several unexplained deaths and collapses.

However, six months later, after an external review found no evidence of criminal activity and Letby's grievance procedure over her removal was upheld, chief executive Tony Chambers instructed consultants to "draw a line under the Lucy issue". He demanded that the doctors apologise to Letby for their derogatory comments after she complained about being labelled as the "angel of death" and the "murderer on the unit", according to the Thirlwall Inquiry into events surrounding Letby's crimes.

Upon planning her return, Letby urged her nursing colleagues to be "sensitive and supportive", claiming she had been "fully exonerated" of any wrongdoing. On January 31, 2017, Letby sent a group email to neonatal nurses stating: "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."

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The nurse expressed in an email: "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.", reports the Mirror.

Giving evidence to the inquiry, Nurse Kathryn Percival-Calderbank recalled the shock amongst staff upon reading the apologetic email, commenting: "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."

Referencing their instructions, she added: "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."

She also mentioned Mr Chambers's specific words advising them to "be nice to Lucy" as she resumed her position. The inquiry was told that despite the consultants' ongoing concerns, Letby's return to the unit from clerical duties was delayed until hospital chiefs eventually involved Cheshire Police in May 2017. Following the police investigation into the infant fatalities at the Countess of Chester Hospital, former chief executive Tony Chambers resigned.

In August 2023, the ex-NHS nurse, aged 34, was found guilty of becoming the UK's worst child murderer after her conviction for the murder of seven infants and the attempted murder of six others at the Countess of Chester Hospital between 2015 and 2016. In July, Letby received her 15th whole-life sentence for attempting to murder a premature baby girl.

After the conviction of Letby, Mr Chambers expressed his profound sorrow regarding the deaths of the babies, stating: "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."

Lady Justice Thirlwall is chairing the inquiry, which is set to continue at Liverpool Town Hall until early next year, with the final report anticipated by late autumn 2025.