MedCrimes: a Medical True Crime Podcast · Kate Macy and Devon Rebecca

The Lainz Angels of Death; part 1

·50 min·3 clips

After killing, Voltroud Wagner says she felt adrenaline, control, and the feeling of 'playing God.'

1. MedCrimes: a Medical True Crime Podcast covers the Lane's Angels of Death, a case centered on Lainz General Hospital in Vienna and Pavilion 5. 2. Devin and Kate host the episode, and Devin narrates the case while Kate asks questions that pull out staffing and nursing details. 3. The episode asks how four Austrian nurses' aides at one ward could become involved in repeated patient killings during the 1980s. 4. Waltraud Wagner is described as a 1960-born nurse's aide from a rural Austrian village who rose into an informal leadership role on the night shift. 5. Mariah Gruber is presented as a 1964-born single mother who left nursing school early and worked night shifts because of staffing shortages. 6. Irene Liedolf is described as a 1962-born married nurse's aide who socialized heavily with co-workers and had no disciplinary record before the crimes. 7. Stefania Meyer is introduced as the oldest woman, an immigrant from Yugoslavia who joined later and was seeking connection in Austria. 8. Lainz General Hospital is described as Vienna's primary long-term care institution for elderly and chronically ill patients, with over 2,000 staff members by the 1980s. 9. Pavilion 5 is called the "Death Pavilion" because it housed frail, medically complex, end-of-life patients who needed total care. 10. The hosts say chronic staffing shortages and weak oversight pushed nurse's aides into duties like injections, medications, and treatments. 11. Waltraud Wagner is portrayed as assertive, charismatic, and manipulative, and the others were drawn to her confidence. 12. Mariah Gruber and Irene Liedolf are described as impressionable workers whose exhaustion and difficult personal lives made them easier to influence. 13. The episode says Stefania Meyer joined later after seeing what the others were doing instead of reporting them. 14. Wagner's first killing is described as a 77-year-old woman in pain who received a massive dose of Rohypnol, also identified as flunitrazepam. 15. The hosts explain that Rohypnol is a benzodiazepine about 10 times more potent than Valium and can cause unconsciousness and death. 16. Wagner reportedly felt adrenaline and control after the killing, and she described the sensation as "playing God." 17. The episode's tone is conversational and case-heavy, with long explanations, direct host back-and-forth, and frequent nursing commentary. 18. The format mixes true-crime narration with clinical context, personal reactions, and short interruptions for clarification. 19. Listeners interested in medical true crime, nursing history, or Austrian cases will get the most from this episode. 20. Listeners wanting a quick standalone mystery with a closed ending may prefer a shorter case.

As heard by us

A grim hospital-night-shift story that blends tight social detail with loose, reactive host banter.

This episode settles into the night shift's close social world at Pavilion 5, where thin oversight makes the work feel like a refuge and the talk keeps returning to loneliness, purpose, and kinship.

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Why you'd press play

Want a Med Crimes case that starts on the night shift and leans hard on the people around it?

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