WOODSTOCK, ONT—Five elderly women and three men. All parents, grandparents, or beloved friends and all allegedly killed in two long-term-care homes by a registered nurse who police say acted with intent.

When the Ontario Provincial Police announced the investigation on Tuesday, with officers from Woodstock and London police, they gave scant details beyond the fact that 49-year-old Elizabeth Tracey Mae Wettlaufer was charged with eight counts of first-degree murder.

Wettlaufer gave unidentified drugs to seven residents at Caressant Care Woodstock and one resident at Meadow Park long-term-care home in London, Ont., police said. The first case victim they identified was 84-year-old James Silcox, in Woodstock, who died on Aug. 17, 2007. The last was 75-year-old Arpad Horvath, on Aug. 31, 2014. No bodies will be exhumed, police said.

Information about the alleged killings came to Woodstock Police on Sept. 29 and a short time later a joint task force was created, with the OPP taking the lead. Wettlaufer gave up her nursing licence on Sept. 30.

Wettlaufer was arrested on Monday night. On Tuesday morning, when reporters gathered at a Woodstock community centre for a press conference, the former nurse made her first appearance at the downtown courthouse. She was remanded into custody.

Two residents are alleged to have been killed in 2007, three in 2011, one in 2013 and the final two in 2014.

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That much is known. Police won’t release more details, saying additional information is protected as evidence in the investigation.

What is known, however, is that this case is yet another hit on Ontario’s 630 long-term-care homes, which experts say are severely underfunded and short-staffed.

Doris Grinspun, CEO of the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario, said, “There’s not enough brain power. There’s not enough leg power to give residents the care they need.”

The 77,000 residents are coming into homes older and frailer, but, Grinspun said, their fragile condition doesn’t mean “it’s in the hands of the health professional to make (life and death) decisions.”

Police wouldn’t identify the type of drugs they say the residents were given, nor would they say whether the checks and balances for nursing-home drugs records were followed.

Nurses are expected to follow a code of ethics when signing off on drug administration to residents. But, as one industry source said, it’s difficult to find wrongdoing or errors when, for example, someone correctly fills out paperwork but elects to withhold a drug from one resident to double up on another. It is not known what police believe happened in the Wettlaufer case.

Wettlaufer is being investigated by the College of Nurses of Ontario, confirmed Denise Riposati, communications adviser for the college, which is the regulatory body for nurses in the province.

Records from the college show that Wettlaufer was first registered as a nurse in August 1995. She resigned Sept. 30 of this year and is no longer entitled to practise as a registered nurse.

Fred Spina, 57, said he’s seen Wettlaufer at the nursing home before while visiting friends there.

“She was always polite, so when I heard the name it was a shock,” Spina said. “It can’t be.”

He said the nursing home is known for being one of the best in Woodstock.

“I just couldn’t believe it because this is Woodstock. It’s a small town. Things like that happen very rarely,” he said. “It doesn’t happen here.”

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In a statement, Trevor Birtch, the mayor of Woodstock, said: “This is a very sad moment for the city of Woodstock. Our hearts go out to the families, and I want to assure them that the community will assist them through this tough process.”

Charlene Puffer, who said she lives down the hall from Wettlaufer’s apartment, described her neighbour as a decent person.

Neighbour Derek Gilbert said, “She seemed like a very normal person. She came by and walked her dog with my dog and we talked. She seemed like a normal everyday person.”

Wettlaufer’s former husband, Dan Wettlaufer, still lives in the white bungalow they once shared. When he opened the back door to his home, he said he would not be talking. Asked if he knew any details, he responded: “I don’t know, myself. I’m not going to speak on it at all.”

On Monday night, Wettlaufer’s former employer, Caressant Care Woodstock, sent the Star a written statement saying, “We deeply regret the additional grief and stress this is imposing on the families involved.”

A Caressant spokesperson, Lee Griffi, said, “We are determined to avoid compromising the police investigation in any way and are therefore unable to provide any additional comment at this time.” Caressant Care operates 15 homes with 1,250 beds in Ontario.

On Tuesday, Meadow Park long-term-care home in London issued a written statement, saying it is “cooperating fully with police investigating the actions of a former staff member who left our home’s employ some two years ago.”

A Meadow Park spokesperson, Julie King, also said, “Our highest priority is to continue to provide for the health and comfort of our residents, and that remains our focus.”

News of the alleged killings erupted at Queen’s Park, with NDP and Conservative critics pouncing on the government Liberals, saying homes are not properly funded to ensure residents get good care.

Premier Kathleen Wynne called the circumstances “extremely distressing” under questioning from London-area New Democrat MPP Theresa Armstrong, who later told reporters “the government had no idea this was happening. It’s not acceptable . . . There’s obviously big, gaping holes.”

Health Minister Eric Hoskins would not answer repeated questions on what the standard procedures for nursing homes reporting deaths are and about subsequent oversight by officials in his ministry.

“This is an ongoing police investigation. I think it would be inappropriate for me to speak in detail. We need to let that investigation unfold,” Hoskins said as he was swarmed by journalists after the Legislature’s daily question period.

“I know you have a lot of questions. Ontarians have a lot of questions . . . There will be time to answer those questions,” he added. The health ministry released a statement clarifying that when a long-term care home resident dies “unexpectedly,” the death must be reported to ministry officials through the existing “critical incident” reporting system. Otherwise, nursing homes must report patient deaths to the local coroner, who has the power to decide if an autopsy is warranted.