Ugendra Singh: Hebersham nurse charged with poisoning wife with drip
An ICU nurse has faced court on allegations he stole drugs and equipment from a hospital before hooking his wife up to a drip and pumping sedatives into her bloodstream. His wife has told how she woke feeling “groggy”.
Penrith
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The woman allegedly drugged by her husband via intravenous drip said she woke feeling “wobbly” and knew immediately something was wrong.
Police allege intensive care nurse Ugendra Singh, 45, offered to give wife Joytika Lata, 38, a saline drip because she was dehydrated about 11am on Monday. She woke at 7pm and called police to their Hebersham home.
Singh had allegedly hooked his wife up to the powerful sedative Propofol, which police said he stole from Liverpool Hospital where he worked, a court heard yesterday.
“I was feeling wobbly and disoriented and I was blacking out a little bit but I was aware of what was happening around me,” Ms Lata said after being released from hospital yesterday. She said she had wanted to go to hospital before allegedly being given the drip at home.
“I was dehydrated, I wanted to go to the hospital ... he said because of the COVID thing it’s not safe to go … so he said ‘I will do it at home’,” Ms Lata, also a qualified nurse, said.
Singh was charged with four offences including using poison to endanger life and common assault.
Magistrate Janine Lacey denied Singh bail in Liverpool Local Court, saying: “He was caught on CCTV taking several boxes of medication out of his boot over a five-hour period.
“He said he took the medication from his workplace for a pest-control issue as he couldn’t afford a professional.
“There was an immediate complaint after her alleged concerns, after having found several vials of the drug near the bed in combination with the after-effects she was experiencing. That, combined with his alleged admissions of stealing the sedative from the hospital, and knowledge of inserting a cannula and administering intravenous sedatives would, in the court’s view, provide a particular strength to the case.”
Ms Lacey said “the alleged facts are of a very disturbing nature … they involve an attempt to endanger the life of his wife while she was feeling unwell within her own home.
“She requested the assistance of her husband, who is an ICU nurse, because she was feeling dehydrated.
“The most serious offence before the court carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in jail, and, in the court’s view, the matter would carry a full-time custodial sentence of some length if convicted.
“Given the strength of the prosecution case, and the unacceptable risk of endangering the safety of the victim, I’m not satisfied the risk can be ameliorated. Bail is refused.”
Neighbour Uzma Khan said that she was shocked when Ms Lata called her from the hospital on Tuesday.
“She was crying, she told me all the story, (she said) things are not good,” Ms Khan said.
South Western Sydney Health District said Singh had been stood down.
Singh’s case was adjourned until July 2.