After nearly two years, suspicions surrounding insulin murder come to light: nurse arrested after speaking about his wife’s wishes

Nadir Rossi, a 35-year-old nurse, has been arrested in Verona, Italy, on suspicion of causing his wife’s death by injecting her with insulin. According to investigators, he allegedly administered the hormone first at home and then at the hospital where she was admitted, causing a severe episode of hypoglycemia. Jessica Dalla Chiara, 32, also worked as a nurse.

The incident took place on June 24, 2024. Italian media report that insulin was administered intravenously and without medical justification, causing the 32-year-old’s death. After her death, her husband received the life insurance payout under a policy Jessica had taken out two years earlier.

After losing his wife, Rossi appeared distraught and said she understood that her condition could end tragically. He linked this to the last episode, when Jessica was discharged from the hospital after suffering hypoglycemia.

“She told me, ‘Here, I’ve written down my wishes.’ I thought she was joking, but she wasn’t… The first wish my wife left me was our daughter, Aurora. Jessica asked me to live for her, the fruit of our love, and that’s what I’ll do from now on. In this devastating moment, that is giving me the strength to carry on without her, my one and only great love,” he had said. His arrest, nearly two years after the incident, now gives those words a different meaning.

Rossi worked at Verona’s university hospital complex but left his job last year. According to published reports, his dismissal followed an internal disciplinary procedure and was unrelated to the murder investigation. He did not challenge the decision in the Labour Court.

A statement from the Verona Police Headquarters says that in November 2025, the nurse attempted to end his life in the men’s changing room near the emergency department at Borgo Roma Hospital. He allegedly took five ampoules of a fentanyl-based medication and ten ampoules of morphine from the ward’s safe, which he was responsible for. Colleagues found him unconscious, with an intravenous cannula in his arm.

In addition to murder, Rossi has also been charged with attempted aggravated murder, destruction and concealment of a body through a cremation carried out under false pretenses, insurance fraud, and the continued misappropriation of medication.

The investigation was opened following two reports. The first came in July 2024 from Verona’s university hospital complex itself. After Jessica’s autopsy, doctors concluded that the repeated episodes of hypoglycemia could not be explained by natural causes. They suspected the episodes may have been caused by insulin administered from outside the body and for no therapeutic purpose.

The victim’s parents also provided a lead for the investigation, having expressed serious, well-founded doubts about the circumstances of their daughter’s death from the outset. They also questioned their son-in-law’s haste in handling the body, after he decided that Jessica should be cremated immediately after her death. The material supporting the request to arrest the 35-year-old also includes suspicious internet searches about hypoglycemia, insulin, and insulin overdose.

A review of the suspect’s phone history revealed targeted searches about the signs of severe hypoglycemia, the differential diagnosis of hyperinsulinism, and forensic toxicology methods used to detect insulin overdose.

Investigators say these searches began in April 2024, several weeks before his wife developed health problems. They consider this a factor that may support suspicions of premeditation. However, the charges remain subject to judicial review. The investigation is ongoing to establish the circumstances, while the suspect’s criminal responsibility will be determined by the courts.