Lucy Letby, a nurse, rejected the advances of a consultant who allegedly expressed interest in her, according to testimony in a public inquiry.

This incident was among “lots of rumours” circulating as Letby was removed from the neonatal unit at Countess of Chester Hospital in July 2016, following a series of sudden and unexplained deaths and collapses of babies.

After all seven pediatric consultants expressed their concerns that Letby might deliberately harm infants, she was redeployed to clerical duties. She later filed a complaint with the health trust regarding her removal, but a grievance hearing concluded that no evidence of wrongdoing had been established. Letby remained employed at the hospital until her arrest in July 2018, more than a year after Cheshire Police began their investigation.

Annette Weatherley, the independent chairwoman of the grievance hearing held in December 2016, later shared with Cheshire Police that she believed Letby was the victim of a “witch hunt.” She remarked, “The consultants are doing their own kind of investigation … there were lots of rumours.”

Weatherley further stated, “They decided it was her, she was the baby killer. They were openly talking about her as the baby killer. They went to the trust and said ‘she is the baby killer, we don’t want her on the unit.’”

Among the rumours mentioned by Weatherley was a consultant's alleged advances toward Letby. She told detectives, “I can’t remember who said it but there was a rumour… a consultant had made it clear he had an interest in her and she had rebuffed it.”

When asked if the advances were physical, Weatherley confirmed, “Yes, physically. It was someone that told me that, I can’t remember who it was when I was there but there was a rumour.”

Letby denied any inappropriate advances from neonatal clinical lead Dr. Stephen Brearey or children’s services lead Dr. Ravi Jayaram, according to a statement made to a nursing manager. Karen Rees, the head of nursing in urgent care at the time, noted her inquiry about a “personal motive” behind the concerns raised by the consultants.

Rees recounted, “I asked her if either of them had ever made a pass at her. She replied ‘absolutely not.’”

Currently aged 34 and from Hereford, Letby is serving 15 whole-life sentences after being convicted at Manchester Crown Court of murdering seven infants and attempting to murder seven others between June 2015 and June 2016.

The inquiry is anticipated to continue until early 2025, with findings expected to be published by late autumn of that year.