A British registered nurse in Virginia, USA, has been arrested in connection with a disturbing attack that left a vulnerable newborn with an “unexplainable fracture” in a hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit in November.
The 26-year-old suspect, Erin Elizabeth Ann Strotman, was detained at Henrico County Jail on charges of malicious wounding and child abuse causing serious injury at approximately 1:15 a.m. on Friday, 3rd January.
Further charges may follow as detectives continue to investigate a series of similar incidents.
A concerning pattern of injuries to infants in the NICU at Henrico Doctors’ Hospital in Richmond during November and December prompted officials to launch an internal investigation and close the unit to new admissions on Christmas Eve.
Public records indicate that Strotman’s registered nurse’s licence was first issued in 2019 and remains valid until May 2026.
“In late November/December, we discovered that three babies in our Henrico Doctors’ Hospital NICU sustained unexplainable fractures, mirroring an incident involving four infants in the summer of 2023,” the hospital stated in a press release.
Concerned parents reported the injuries to Child Protective Services last year.
“Finally, we can obtain some answers regarding who abused our son. I wish I could express happiness upon learning of her arrest; however, upon learning the details concerning the other babies, the only emotion I feel is sadness and regret,” Dominique Hackey, the father of one of the victims, told Fox News Digital on Friday.
“I am heartbroken to learn the extent to which this individual was permitted to act with impunity, and regret that I should have spoken out sooner in the hope of preventing other children from being harmed.”
Hackey first shared his story with local news station Wtvr-tv last month, revealing the confusion surrounding an injury sustained by one of his twin sons. His son suffered a mysterious fracture to his tibia in September 2023. His mother, herself a former NICU nurse, reported the injury to social services. It was not until a year later that Henrico CPS informed them that their son had been the victim of physical abuse by an unnamed hospital staff member. Subsequently, in October, county police reportedly informed them of other, similar cases.
The hospital announced the closure of its NICU on 24th December following the three most recent incidents, but even then, the alleged assailant remained unidentified until police announced Strotman’s arrest on Friday.
“Out of an abundance of caution, we are not admitting any additional infants into our NICU at this time,” the hospital stated on Christmas Eve. “While fractures occasionally occur in premature infants due to their incomplete foetal bone development, we are actively working to determine how these fractures occurred.”
Although hospital officials previously stated that fractures can occur in premature babies, they nevertheless increased security measures, installed new surveillance systems, and notified the police after the second series of attacks.
New safety measures included training on general safety and the identification and reporting of signs of abuse, head-to-toe examinations of patients by doctors, and an observer system where each healthcare provider is accompanied by another clinician whenever they enter a baby’s room, the hospital stated.
They also provided law enforcement with hours of surveillance footage, which officers were still reviewing following Strotman’s arrest in connection with an incident that occurred on 10th November.
“We appreciate the patience of the families and the public as we work as thoroughly and expeditiously as possible to investigate every piece of evidence related to these cases,” stated Henrico Chief of Police Eric English in a press release.
“I would also like to acknowledge the unwavering efforts of our detectives who continue to scrutinise hundreds of hours of footage and extend my sincere gratitude to Henrico’s Child Protective Services (Department of Social Services), the Henrico County Commonwealth Attorney’s Office, Virginia State Police, the Virginia Department of Health, and the Office of the Attorney General for their assistance in this matter.”
Charges have not been filed in Hackey’s case, but police stated that they are actively gathering evidence in all of the remaining incidents.
Strotman is a resident of Midlothian, a suburb of Richmond, and authorities are investigating her involvement in a number of similar cases between 2023 and 2024, including inactive cases, Henrico police stated on Friday.
“All previously closed cases related to these incidents have been reopened,” police stated in a press release. “All families involved in this current broader investigation have been notified.”
Due to healthcare privacy laws, authorities stated that they could not release many additional details.
“We are both shocked and saddened by this development in the investigation and are focused on continuing to provide care for our patients and support to our colleagues who have been deeply and personally affected by this investigation,” stated HCA Healthcare, which owns the hospital, in a press release.
With further charges possible, police are urging anyone with information to come forward.
Court records reveal that Strotman’s previous encounters with the law involved only minor traffic offences.
She was scheduled for arraignment on Friday morning at the Henrico Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court.
Regarding the Hackey family, their son has since recovered from his fracture and is doing well.
“He is a very adventurous little boy,” stated his father.
