Reta Mays

Summary

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Snapped: Women Who Murder

Episode Summary: “Reta Mays”

Podcast: Snapped: Women Who Murder
Host: Oxygen
Episode: Reta Mays
Original Air Date: April 5, 2026

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Overview:

This chilling episode examines the true crime case of Reta Mays, a nursing assistant at a VA hospital in Clarksburg, West Virginia, who became one of America's most recent serial killers. The episode explores how Mays preyed on elderly male veterans by injecting them with insulin, leading to a string of unexplained deaths. Through in-depth interviews and meticulous investigation, the episode unpacks the horrors of the case, the emotional impact on families, and the systemic failures that allowed these crimes to persist.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights:

1. The Mysterious Illnesses Begin

• Setting: Clarksburg, West Virginia, Lewis A. Johnson Medical Center, a small but vital VA hospital ([02:08]).
• First Suspicious Case:
  • 92-year-old war veteran Russell Posey Sr. suffers a sudden, life-threatening hypoglycemic event despite having no history of diabetes. Family and staff are perplexed ([03:09], [05:51]).
  • Quote: “His sugar had dropped from, I think, approximately 117, 118 down to 14 in a matter of minutes. And that sent him into cardiac arrest.” – Vincent Posey ([05:13])
• Medical Anomaly: Repeated events of unexplained hypoglycemia in non-diabetic patients ([00:55]).

2. A Pattern Emerges

• Over several months, multiple elderly, male patients (aged 72–96) in Ward 3A experience similar unexplained drops in blood sugar, often resulting in death ([12:08], [18:26]).
• Notable Victims:
  • Robert Kozol, Archie Edgell, George Shaw Sr., Felix McDermott, Raymond Golden, and others ([12:44]–[18:26]).
  • Quote: “They were all on the upswing and expecting to be discharged.” – Family Member/Advocate ([18:43])
• The hospital, initially slow to act, sees rumors spread about a mysterious “angel of death” ([02:02], [13:06], [15:34], [34:01]).

3. Investigation and Red Flags

• Investigation is formally launched when the hospital cannot find medical explanations. It is discovered someone is administering insulin surreptitiously ([19:12], [20:02]).
  • Quote: “These events couldn’t be occurring naturally or by accident. This was being done by someone.” – Website User 2 / Investigator ([01:27], [19:49])
• FBI and VA Office of Inspector General join the probe; all suspicious deaths occurred in Ward 3A ([21:30]).
• Employee Review:
  • Time records and sitter logs reveal Reta Mays was present at every suspicious event, often assigned to direct one-on-one care for the victims ([22:13]–[23:00]).
  • Audit trails from glucometers suggest she recorded a disproportionate number of severe low blood sugar readings ([23:33]–[23:58]).

4. Who Was Reta Mays?

• Background:
  • Late 40s, local to Clarksburg; former Army National Guard member; briefly a corrections officer, left amid an excessive force investigation ([26:07]–[27:24]).
  • Personal turmoil: husband serving prison time, son with legal issues ([26:26], [31:07]).
• Employment: Stellar workplace reputation, even awarded “Nursing Assistant of the Year.” Yet, some colleagues recall her seeking proximity to victims during crises ([27:58]–[28:16]).
• Quote: “They thought it was unusual that Rita was often found in the room with the victims, holding their hands, asking questions as to why and how this could have happened.” – Hospital Administrator ([28:16])

5. Building the Criminal Case

• Despite strong suspicions, evidence is circumstantial; Rita is reassigned away from patient care ([29:39], [30:41]).
• Investigators search for motive: power, control amid personal chaos, and even possible “mercy killings” ([30:51], [40:18]).
• Electronic evidence: Rita viewed true crime shows about nurses who killed, some featuring insulin as a murder weapon ([31:27]).
• After a 5.5-hour FBI interview, Rita denies involvement, then “lawyers up” ([32:47], [33:27]).
  • Quote: “Did you have anything to do with the deaths or incidents with these patients? Absolutely not.” – Rita Mays ([32:47])

6. Exhumations, Forensics, and Breakthroughs

• Investigators exhume victims’ bodies with family consent to seek forensic proof ([34:01]).
• Medical examiner finds insulin injection sites; seven deaths officially ruled homicides ([35:44]–[36:12]).
  • Quote: “What really hit a smack in the face is seeing the autopsy report. And in big black bold letters, the words homicide, it just all became real.” – George Shaw Sr.’s son ([35:56])

7. Charges, Plea Deal, and Sentencing

• With firm evidence, Rita is served with a target letter; her lawyers pursue a plea deal after review of evidence ([37:47]–[39:00]).
• Plea Agreement: Admits to seven counts of second-degree murder and one of attempted murder. Sentenced to seven life terms plus 20 years ([39:37]).
  • Quote (Judge): “Rita, the monster no one sees coming.” ([39:55])
• Family’s Perspective: Supports the plea to avoid a painful trial ([39:12], [39:55]).

8. Motive Examined, But Never Understood

• Rita offers inconsistent rationales: partial “mercy killings,” but the suffering of patients disproves that; claims killing gave her a sense of control amid her chaotic life ([40:07], [41:25]).
  • Quote: “These veterans were not on death’s door at all when they were admitted...That’s no angel of mercy to me. That’s a monster.” – George Shaw Sr.’s son ([40:54])
  • Quote: “Why did Rita snap? I have no idea why she went to the dark side and started playing God.” – Vincent Posey ([42:01])
• Investigators and families acknowledge true motive may never be known ([41:25], [42:01]).

9. Remembrance and Legacy

• Families focus on honoring their loved ones’ memories and hope the tragedy leads to better care and oversight for veterans.
  • Quote: “They should be remembered as men who honorably served our country, who were loved and loved their families and deserved a lot better.” – Family Member / Advocate ([42:53])
  • Quote: “Their families will make sure that they are never forgotten. Never forgotten.” – George Shaw Sr.’s son ([43:13])

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments:

• “His sugar had dropped in a matter of minutes. That sent him into cardiac arrest.” – Vincent Posey ([00:38])
• “It was pretty clear something terrible had gone wrong at this hospital.” – Hospital Staff / Colleague ([01:06])
• “There were events with a number of patients of unexplained hypoglycemia.” – Medical Expert ([00:55])
• “That’s no angel of mercy. To me. That’s a monster.” – George Shaw Sr.’s son ([01:48], [40:54])
• “She had been accused in several complaints of being excessively harsh...” – Hospital Colleague ([27:33])
• “What really hit a smack in the face is seeing the autopsy report. And in big black bold Letters, the words homicide...” – George Shaw Sr.’s son ([35:56])
• “Why did Rita snap? I have no idea why she went to the dark side and started playing God.” – Vincent Posey ([42:01])
• “They should be remembered as men who honorably served our country...They deserved a lot better.” – Family Member / Advocate ([42:53])

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Key Timestamps:

| MM:SS | Segment | Content | |-----------|-------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------------------------------| | 00:31 | Introduction | Discovery of the first unexplained, life-threatening illness | | 03:09 | Victim’s Family | Posey’s son recounts events leading up to attack | | 05:51 | Medical Puzzlement | Posey's history, unexplained hypoglycemia | | 12:08 | Pattern Recognition | Multiple patients, same symptoms, different cases | | 19:12 | Investigation Begins | VA refers the case for criminal investigation | | 22:13 | Reta Mays Narrowed as Suspect | Timecard and sitter logs reveal pattern | | 26:07 | Rita’s Background | Personal history and previous jobs | | 30:41 | Hospital Reassigns Mays | Moved from patients to mailroom | | 31:27 | Electronic Evidence | Rita watches “Nurses Who Kill” episodes | | 32:47 | FBI Interview | Rita denies involvement, requests lawyer | | 34:01 | Consent for Exhumation | Families agree, autopsies ordered | | 35:44 | Autopsy Findings | Insulin injection sites found, deaths ruled homicide | | 39:37 | Sentencing | Multiple life sentences handed down | | 40:07 | Motive Discussion | Rita’s claimed rationales, investigators counter | | 42:53 | In Memoriam | Families resolve to remember the victims |

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Tone and Style Reflection:

Throughout the episode, the narrative remains empathetic, methodical, and somber, showing deep respect for the victims and the emotional devastation experienced by families. The investigative process is described with clarity and precision, mirroring the tenacity and human perspective of law enforcement and loved ones alike.

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For Listeners:

This episode is an unflinching look at a real-life medical serial killer, interweaving the pain of loss, the relentless pursuit of the truth, and the complex psychology behind the crimes. For those interested in true crime, healthcare accountability, or the resilience of victims’ families, this episode offers both closure in the form of justice and a sobering reminder of vigilance in systems of care.

Transcript

[Website User 1]

How did you get your website to look like that? Mine's so basic. Thanks. I just used wix Harmony. Sounds fancy.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

What's that?

[Website User 1]

It's wix's AI website builder. You can just tell it what you want and it builds you a whole site. So it's like vibe coding a website. Exactly. But even better because you can still click and edit anything by hand. You don't have to use prompts for everything.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

Oh, that's neat.

[Website User 1]

Yeah. Try it for [e-mail] Harmony

[Narrator]

a war veteran struck by a mysterious life threatening illness.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

His sugar had dropped in a matter of minutes. That sent him into cardiac arrest.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

He was non diabetic and there was absolutely no reason for his blood sugar to be low.

[Narrator]

As investigators dig into the mystery, a disturbing pattern comes to light.

[Medical Expert]

There were events with a number of patients of unexplained hypoglycemia.

[Investigator]

A rumor mill spread around the hospital. It could have been anybody.

[Hospital Staff / Colleague]

It was pretty clear something terrible had gone wrong at this hospital.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

All of the deaths in this case occurred in a single unit of the hospital.

[Narrator]

To unearth the horrifying truth, investigators must expose a killer preying on a community's most vulnerable members.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

These events couldn't be occurring naturally or by accident. This was being done by someone.

[Investigator]

Insulin had been administered subcutaneously or injected into the patients.

[FBI Interviewer]

Did you have anything to do with the deaths or incidents with these patients? Absolutely not.

[George Shaw Sr.'s Son]

That's no angel of mercy. To me. That's a monster.

[Narrator]

Clarksburg, West Virginia is a small town with a proud history. It's home to the Lewis A. Johnson Medical center, which is One of the 172 veterans hospitals distributed across the United States.

[Hospital Administrator]

The Louis A. Johnson Medical center is a relatively small facility, has approximately 100 beds and it serves the population of north central West Virginia and surrounding states.

[Hospital Staff / Colleague]

This is a VA hospital that was built after World War II that sits high on a bluff. And you look down over this gorgeous countryside of West Virginia.

[Narrator]

The center serves a vital role in the lives of nearly 70,000 veterans. In June 2018, 92 year old Russell Posey Sr. Becomes the latest to be admitted. But his experience won't be routine.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

My sister called me one morning and said that my father was not acting right. He was sick. So she took him to a VA because that's where his doctors were. They didn't diagnose him with anything for the first date. He was in ICU at low blood pressure with low kidney response. They said his organs were trying to shut down. Eventually they determined that he had pneumonia and they treated him for it. He got better in a couple days. That's when they moved him to section 3A to get just general care, help him get stronger. And then they were going to send him home.

[Narrator]

Ward 3A is the hospital's medical surgical unit, where many patients recuperate before release.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

That was Father's Day that they transferred him into that ward. We all had like a little Father's Day party for him. I stayed with him that night until probably midnight

[Narrator]

with plans to see his father the following morning. Vincent Posey leaves him to rest, but before returning, he receives unsettling news.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

The next morning, I got a call from my sister. The hospital had called. They said dad had been unresponsive in the middle of the night and that he had an episode. She asked the doctors what had happened and nobody could give her an answer at that time.

[Narrator]

While Vincent is en route, doctors have determined Russell Posey Sr. S blood sugar levels plummeted during the night, resulting in a life threatening hypoglycemic attack.

[Hospital Administrator]

A hypoglycemic event is a drop in one's blood sugar level essentially below 70 is what could be considered a hypoglycemic event.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

His sugar had dropped from, I think approximately 117, 118 down to 14 in a matter of minutes. And that sent him into cardiac arrest.

[Medical Expert]

You can't spend much time with a blood sugar in the tens or twenties. It is very unusual and it's incredibly rare. You're going to start considering organ system failures.

[Narrator]

Doctors are working feverishly to save Russell's life, but his family is certain. Nothing in his history explains the crisis.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

My father never had any diabetes or sugar issues ever. A little bit of high blood pressure he's being treated for, but never any issues with sugar. The nurses and the doctors were both like, we don't understand what happened.

[Narrator]

Russell Posey Sr. Was born in Lewis County, West Virginia, in 1925. He was raised on a farm, and at the age of 18, like many men of his generation, he answered the call to fight in World War II.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

My father joined the Navy in 1943. He went to a group called the Raiders, which, if I understand it correctly, was the predecessor to the seals.

[Narrator]

Russell was sent to Florida for rigorous training. Upon completion, his unit was selected to perform a dangerous mission.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

He was supposed to swim ashore, evade the enemy, draw maps and check the tides and things like that. But he had boarded the ship and he was on his way to Japan when they dropped the bombs on Hiroshima. And Nagasaki by them dropping those bombs. He didn't have to swim ashore and try to map the coast of Japan. He didn't expect to come back home from that. He ended up going to Okinawa and he was cleaning up the war debris and helping restore, you know, infrastructure.

[Narrator]

After the war, Russell returned to the States with a new lease on life. He attended West Virginia University, where he became president of his fraternity and met the love of his life, Nelva.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

My mom lived in Morgantown. She was born in Italy and came over when she was six years old. And I think that she met him accidentally through another date that she was on. And then he started dating her.

[Narrator]

Russell and Nelva were married on December 30, 1950. They spent the next 55 years together raising four children and building a lasting legacy in their small town.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

He bought a drive in restaurant called the Dairy Delight. That was in 69, 70. And then shortly after that, we opened another business called Posey's Lawn and Garden. And we ran those businesses for about 30 years. The whole family kind of helped out with that. After he quit the businesses, when he retired, he moved back to Lewis county onto one of the farms he had owned over there.

[Narrator]

After more than half a century of marital bliss, Russell lost the love of his life. When Nelva passed away in 2005, Russell struggled to move on and found himself looking for new purpose in his golden years.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

When she passed and he was in that house by himself, he didn't like it. So he went to church quite a bit. We kept active with the grandkids coming over as much as we could.

[Narrator]

Now, 13 years later, Russell's life hangs in the balance as his family waits for him to regain consciousness in the wake of a deadly hypoglycemic attack.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

He had three IVs of dextrose, I think, being pumped into him, and they kept checking him, like every couple minutes.

[Medical Expert]

Dextrose is a simple sugar that's used as a rescue treatment for low blood sugar. There certainly is potential for survival, but it all depends on the reserve and how quickly that low blood sugar is responded to.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

He would fade in and out of consciousness. That went on through that day.

[Narrator]

The treatment works, but not without complications.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

Later that night, he got to the point where he could talk again and open his eyes and move his arms and stuff like that. He was never the same after that, though. He didn't recognize people. He was talking to people that weren't there. He had gotten stronger enough to where he could be moved to this nursing home, but he was 92, he was never going to get strong enough to where he could live on his own again.

[Narrator]

But the Posey family is desperate to understand how could this have happened?

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

Mr. Posey was non diabetic and he had eaten cheesecake the night before and there was absolutely no reason for his blood sugar to be low.

[Medical Expert]

So it is a very unusual event for a non diabetic. Something else is going on.

[Investigator]

We have to figure out what could cause severe catastrophic low blood sugar events and who could have done this.

[Narrator]

Coming up, an investigation uncovers a disturbing pattern.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

All of these men were in their 80s and 90s. All of them had suffered a very similar hypoglycemic event.

[Narrator]

And there seems to be only one terrifying explanation.

[Investigator]

The rumor mill spread and the term angel of death began to present itself.

[Narrator]

After Russell Posey Sr. S unexplained health crisis. Administrators conduct a review of the veteran's case and the hospital's procedures. What they find is alarming.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

They realized that they had multiple patients that were experiencing the same thing.

[Medical Expert]

There were events with a number of patients of unexplained hypoglycemia. So these patients were experiencing dramatic drops in their blood sugar that couldn't be explained by their underlying condition.

[Narrator]

Administrators review records showing There have been six hypoglycemic incidents that year. The first occurred in late January 2018. The patient was 89 year old Robert Kozol.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

Robert Kozol was a Korean War veteran who was admitted overnight for non life threatening medical issues going on with him. He was not diabetic, but ended up suffering an extreme hypoglycemic event and he received multiple bouts of D50 dextrose.

[Family Member / Advocate]

He was actually really starting to do much, much better. And his family, one of the last memories they have is singing with him in the hospital bed and then he dies shortly thereafter.

[Narrator]

Two months later, the same thing happened to another Korean War veteran, 84 year old Archie Edjal.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

Archie Edgel was admitted to the hospital in late March 2018 for medical conditions related to dementia and was being held ultimately, I think expected to be discharged from the ward when he suffered an extreme hypoglycemic event.

[Narrator]

The two cases seemed unrelated at the time, but a third incident made the pattern harder to ignore. On March 22, 2018, 81 year old George Shaw Sr. Checked into the hospital expecting the quality care he'd grown accustomed to after decades in the armed forces.

[George Shaw Sr.'s Son]

My father joined the service when he was 18. He joined the Air Force and he stayed in the air force for 28 years. Before he retired and moved back here. And then after that he worked for the VA for six years in the mailroom. My father was an honest man, a caring man.

[Narrator]

In his later years, Shaw struggled with short term memory loss, often forgetting to eat and drink.

[George Shaw Sr.'s Son]

That particular day he was dizzy, lightheaded. We decided to take him to the VA to be seen. The doctors wanted to just keep him in the hospital over the weekend and he was going to go home, no big deal.

[Narrator]

Like those before him, Shaw's blood sugar ceased suddenly, plummeted. Without an explanation as to why, every

[George Shaw Sr.'s Son]

organ in his body was starting to shut down. And he kept trying to tell us something. The whole time. He kept pointing, pointing that finger, pointing that finger and trying to talk. And we knew he was trying to tell us something, but we didn't know what for sure. It took him two weeks, two weeks to pass away. He suffered. Organ after organ after organ shut down. The doctors didn't give us an explanation because they were confused. They didn't understand why his sugar dropped that low. We thought somebody had gave him the wrong medicine on accident. We thought it was just a big mistake.

[Narrator]

However, the incident still went unreported.

[Hospital Staff / Colleague]

There were members of the hospital staff who privately and among themselves wondered what was going on and became very, very alarmed. But VA hospitals generally have a culture that really makes it very hard for people to come forward.

[Narrator]

Two more deaths occurred in April 2018, two months before Russell's hypoglycemic event. A 96 year old veteran listed under the initials WAH and 82 year old Felix McDermott.

[Felix McDermott's Son]

My dad was talkative, he was friendly man, never forgot a joke. He went right into the service after high school and then he was a paratrooper. He was 25 years old and he was with the 101st at one point in the 82nd Airborne. And he got out after a year in Vietnam and then he rejoined when my brother joined SO and finished at his years and reserves. He was military to the core. He always told us after my mom passed, if anything happens to me, I want you to put me in a nursing home.

[Narrator]

Similar to the other patients, McDermott's condition was not life threatening. When he was admitted, he had gotten

[Felix McDermott's Son]

food down in his lungs when he was eating dinner and he had developed pneumonia from it. He went in on a Friday. By Sunday he was doing a lot better. The antibiotic was doing its job. I told him, hey dad, I'm going to go back to work. You should be going home tomorrow. We got called in Sunday night and they tell us that dad's sugar had failed. He bought him diet and it come down to my dad's dnr. So choice was made to let him pass. My dad never had problems with the sugar until that night. That was the first time ever.

[Narrator]

Two months later, 88 year old Raymond golden would become the sixth man to die from a hypoglycemic event.

[Hospital Staff / Colleague]

By the time June had come around, the investigators were confronted with six deaths of elderly male veterans.

[Family Member / Advocate]

They all ranged in age from 72 to 96. They all had health problems. They were in the hospital for one reason or another. They were all on the upswing and expecting to be discharged.

[Narrator]

Russell Posey Sr. Is the only one of these men who survived. And now that hospital administrators are aware of the problem, they finally take action.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

When they could not find a medical explanation, they referred the matter for criminal investigation by the Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General.

[Investigator]

We investigate allegations of fraud, waste and abuse pertaining to VA programs and facilities. This investigation was first brought to our attention on the evening of June 27, 2018. One of the first things that we tried to do was go to the medical experts to figure out what could have been the root cause of this. And what the medical experts were indicating was that only insulin could lower these sugars that severely.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

So it was determined that these hypoglycemic events couldn't be occurring naturally or by accident. This was being done by someone.

[Narrator]

The facts describe a horrifying scenario. Someone inside the hospital, most likely a caregiver, has been using insulin as a lethal weapon.

[Investigator]

The term angel of death began to present itself early in the investigation and the rumor mill spread around the hospital. Once everyone heard that there was an ensuing investigation. The fact that it was a series of inpatients over a short span, the thought process of course crosses your mind that do we have a serial killer on our hands?

[Narrator]

After initial findings suggest a caregiver could be killing patients at a veterans hospital in West Virginia, additional resources are immediately committed to the investigation.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

The Veterans Affairs Officer, Inspector General joined with the FBI and U.S. attorney's office to begin a criminal investigation.

[Investigator]

The VA Medical center in Clarksburg. The facility at any point in time has approximately 1,200 employees. There were any number of employees who could have had access to any of these patients at any point in time. It could have been anybody.

[Narrator]

Agents try to narrow down the pool of suspects by analyzing patterns in the suspicious deaths.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

All of the deaths in this case occurred in a single unit of the hospital called Ward 3A.

[Family Member / Advocate]

Ward 3A wasn't an intensive care unit or anything like that. For people expecting to die, it was general medicine, where people were recovering and expecting to be discharged.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

Employees do have to scan their cards in order to access different access points, so they immediately start checking timesheets, particularly for folks who worked on or had access to Ward 3A.

[Narrator]

Only one person fits all of the requirements.

[Hospital Administrator]

Upon further review of the Ward 3A time card record, we learned that Rita Mays was the only three A employee that was working when all of the hypoglycemic events occurred. Rita Mays was a nursing assistant. Her duties entailed responding to patient call bells, assisting with their daily needs of living, changing linens, and also conducting finger sticks, checking the diabetic patient's blood sugar levels.

[Narrator]

Records indicate Rita wasn't only working in the ward during all of the incidents. She was also in the room with many of the victims.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

The hospital kept sitter logs, which is just a list of when someone required one on one attention from a nursing assistant or sometimes a nurse. In five of our cases, she was sitting one on one with the victim immediately prior to them experiencing the hypoglycemic events.

[Narrator]

Investigators also find evidence that Rita seemed very interested in the blood sugar levels of her patients.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

So the hospital had glucometers, which is just an instrument that will measure blood glucose levels. Nursing staff as well as nursing assistants use the glucometers. They're required to log in.

[Investigator]

We quickly determined that Rita Mays took a disproportionate amount of these severely low blood sugar readings, as opposed to other staff.

[Narrator]

As investigators keep digging, the glue readings reveal something else.

[Investigator]

Looking at the audit trails, our investigative team was able to identify an additional patient who suffered similar low blood sugar readings.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

Robert Edge was admitted with a UTI in July of 2017. Nothing to do with blood sugar.

[Robert Edge Sr.'s Grandchild]

My grandfather joined the Navy right out of high school to make sure that he was able to provide for himself, but also for my grandmother to be able to provide for a family in the future. When he was admitted in the hospital, my dad had texted me and was like, we're just gonna get this situation under control, and then he'll just come back home.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

He was diabetic, but he was not receiving insulin from the hospital. It was not on his charts at all for requiring that. And his blood sugars at one point prior to his death were measured at 17, which is extremely low.

[Narrator]

Robert Edge Sr. Died within 24 hours of his hypoglycemic event, making him the seventh veteran to pass away under suspicious Circumstances.

[Robert Edge Sr.'s Grandchild]

When my grandpa passed away, there was no additional explanation given to us as to why just that blood sugar issue caused him to pass away. We didn't have my grandpa anymore. I think that it's kind of a wound that's never really healed on our side.

[Narrator]

Agents confirm Rita Mays was the nurse's assistant on duty.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

And so really quickly into the investigation, within the first week, the investigators already had a person of interest, Rita Mays.

[Narrator]

Agents look into Rita's background in an effort to see if there's anything that might tie her to the victims.

[Hospital Staff / Colleague]

Rita Mays at the time was in her late 40s. She was from Clarksburg and her family had moved around the mid Atlantic. She did try to get a college degree in accounting, but didn't make it all the way through. She ended up marrying, having two sons.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

Her home life was not the best. One of her sons had apparently been in jail.

[Investigator]

We learned that her husband, Gordon Mays, was actually currently serving a six year sentence stemming from a conviction for child pornography.

[Narrator]

Rita's personal life is troubling, but it's her employment history that catches investigators attention.

[Investigator]

One of the first things that stuck out was Rita Mays herself.

[Hospital Administrator]

As a veteran, Rita Mays served in the army National Guard from 2001 to 2004, and even deployed as a chemical munitions repairman in support of the war in Iraq.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

She was ultimately honorably discharged in 2006, and she herself received her care from the VA Hospital in Clarkson.

[Investigator]

Prior to joining VA Medical center in Clarksburg, she was actually a corrections officer at a local jail in West Virginia.

[Hospital Administrator]

We learned that she left that position during an internal affairs investigation into allegations of excessive use of force.

[Hospital Staff / Colleague]

She had been accused in several complaints of being excessively harsh and holding prisoners, while another guard was alleged to have kicked a prisoner.

[Investigator]

That obviously set off a red flag.

[Narrator]

When investigators talk to Rita's hospital colleagues, they find it hard to believe she could commit murder.

[Hospital Administrator]

We learned that Rita Mays had a very stellar reputation at the medical center. She had even received a nursing assistant of the year award.

[Narrator]

But some colleagues do recall suspicious behavior.

[Hospital Administrator]

They thought it was unusual that Rita was often found in the room with the victims, holding their hands, asking questions as to why and how this could have happened while they were suffering from the hypoglycemic events.

[Investigator]

It furthered the investigative team's stance that we were on the right track and that Rita was our primary target.

[Narrator]

Rita is suspected in the deaths of seven patients. But less than a week into the investigation, another is added to the list. With the death of Russell Posey Sr.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

My sister got a call. It was about 2 o', clock, 3 o' clock in the morning on July 3rd, that my father had passed in the night. In the medical report, it said natural causes.

[Narrator]

Unfortunately, there's not yet enough evidence to charge Rita.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

There's a big difference between us knowing that she did this in our gut and being able to prove it beyond a shadow of a doubt.

[Narrator]

Even worse, the hospital doesn't have any legal reason to fire Rita.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

We needed to move her off the floor and not give her access to any of their patients.

[Narrator]

Coming up, investigators confront a potential serial killer.

[FBI Interviewer]

Did you have anything to do with these patients? I don't know what they think could have happened.

[Narrator]

But when a suspect refuses to talk, there is only one way to reveal the buried truth.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

The bodies needed to be exhumed.

[Narrator]

Investigators suspect nurses assistant Rita Mays has killed eight patients by injecting them with insulin. But until they can prove she's a murderer, they need to make sure Rita doesn't harm anyone else.

[Investigator]

Our mentality was, now that it's on our watch, we cannot let this happen to any other veterans.

[Hospital Administrator]

We ultimately made a recommendation to the facility to remove her from patient care.

[Investigator]

She was reassigned to the mailroom in a non patient care capacity.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

The thinking became, we need to really get to the psychology of this person. What could she be motivated by?

[Investigator]

There were a lot of things going on in her personal life. There was a lot of turmoil and she was losing control from a lot

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

of different fronts because she had been deployed. PTSD can sometimes play a role, and that was something that we considered

[Narrator]

to ensure they are ready to confront Rita with their findings. Agents spend the next few weeks bolstering their case.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

Electronic evidence ended up being pretty important, so we also obtained some records by search warrant, and it showed us that Rita Mays had been watching a show called Nurses who Killed. Now, look, we're not saying because you watch a show, Nurses who kill, that you might be a nurse who kills. But in fact, on a couple of those episodes, insulin was the weapon of choice.

[Narrator]

Armed with more evidence, investigators set up a meeting with Rita.

[Investigator]

We elected to go with a specialist from the FBI's Behavioral Analysis Unit to conduct an interview with Rita.

[Hospital Administrator]

It was a voluntary interview and lasted approximately five, five and a half hours.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

This interview was really meant to start introducing some of the evidence and see if she would discuss with us anything more.

[FBI Interviewer]

As you know, we're looking at things at the hospital issues, but we're also looking into the patient deaths. And what I'm trying to accomplish is today is figure out what we're missing. Okay.

[Narrator]

After the FBI agent builds rapport with Rita, the questions become more pointed.

[FBI Interviewer]

Did you have anything to do with the deaths or incidents with these patients? Absolutely not. All you guys have been asking these questions about people with low blood sugar. I don't know what they think could have happened. I test the sugar. I tell the nurses what the sugar is. I know it's something to do with that, but I don't know what could have been done.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

As soon as victims are brought up and the pointed questions about anything that might have happened, she really starts to shut down. And that's how she ends the interview.

[FBI Interviewer]

And before the interview, Sydney, I mirror him out.

[Investigator]

I need a lawyer.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

So there was no question that when she left that interview, that she knew she was our prom suspect.

[Narrator]

Investigators see only one way to proceed, and it won't be pleasant.

[Investigator]

Unfortunately, the investigative team had to make the difficult decision of approaching the family members of our identified victims to seek their consent to exhume their remains and perform forensic autopsies.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

We're looking for every type of medical evidence to determine whether there's insulin present.

[Narrator]

It's been two months since the federal investigation began, but this is the first time any of the victims families have been told what's going on.

[Felix McDermott's Son]

It was towards the end of August. FBI come to my house. I was in total shock with it. When they explained that they felt somebody had helped us along and had been giving them insulin.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

What they said is, we're investigating your father's death, and we would like to exhume his body. I said, my father would want to make sure that this never happened to anybody else. And if we can help, I'm in favor of them exhuming the body.

[George Shaw Sr.'s Son]

What hurt me was they were going to disrupt his rest. But then how much of a peaceful rest could he get without knowing the truth? So it was easy to say yes.

[Narrator]

The families of the eight victims give consent, and in fall 2018, investigators exhumed those bodies for autopsies.

[Investigator]

There was potential not only to look for the administration of exogenous insulin in various bodily fluid, but tissue samples that were taken to determine if insulin had been injected into the patients.

[Narrator]

Despite months of decomposition, the medical examiner finds the evidence investigators are looking for.

[Hospital Administrator]

The medical examiner discovered what he believed to be insulin injection sites ultimately determined that these were homicides caused by nefarious insulin injections.

[George Shaw Sr.'s Son]

What really hit a smack in the face is seeing the autopsy report. And in big black bold Letters, the words homicide, it just all became real. Then

[Narrator]

seven of the eight victims, causes of death are now classified as homicide.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

There remained one case that was not able to breach that opinion and left it as undetermined, and that was Mr. Posey.

[Hospital Administrator]

Because he lived so long, approximately two weeks or more after his hypoglycemic event, the medical examiner was unable to definitively say that the insulin injection caused his death.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

On the autopsy, they changed it to suspicious death and undetermined causes, which allowed them to go after her for attempted murder.

[Narrator]

As the victims are buried for a second time, investigators confront Rita with their findings.

[Investigator]

The investigative team made the decision to reveal to her why at this juncture, we knew it was her and only her who had committed these acts.

[FBI Interviewer]

What would you say if you were the prosecutor? With everything that you're showing me, it

[Narrator]

looks like I did it. Even under more pressure, Rita still refuses to confess.

[Investigator]

Ultimately, after being presented with all the evidence, Rita ended the interview, got up and left. She had had enough, and that was it.

[George Shaw Sr.'s Son]

Okay.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

We were at a stage where we believed we had enough evidence. And so at that point, I issued her a target letter that was served on her by the FBI. That target letter simply says, you're a target of an investigation. So she was appointed three attorneys. That's because it's a death penalty eligible case and she has that right. And so we start a dialogue and we are laying out all the evidence against Rita Mays.

[Narrator]

After a two year investigation, authorities are certain 45 year old nursing assistant Rita Mays is responsible for the murders of seven patients at a veterans hospital in West Virginia. But the case never makes it to trial.

[Investigator]

She voluntarily surrendered.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

She was never arrested. She seems to be moving forward in good faith based on conversations with her attorney toward a plea agreement.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

Her attorneys got what we call a reverse proffer, which is pretty much a layout of the case that would be presented against their client. And at that point, they started working out a plea deal.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

Talking to the families, we learned very quickly that they're on board with a plea agreement that would put Rita Mays in prison for life.

[George Shaw Sr.'s Son]

The reason for us accepting the plea deal was so this would not get drawn out any longer than it had to be.

[Website User 2 / Investigator]

Part of the plea agreements were that Rita would admit to second degree murder. So we had seven counts of second degree murder and one count of attempted murder. In Mr. Posey's case,

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

the court sentenced Rita Mays to the maximum allowed by law, which here was seven terms of life imprisonment and 20 years for that assault with intent to commit murder. Rita Mays will spend the rest of her life behind bars.

[Narrator]

During sentencing, the judge calls Rita the monster no one sees coming. The only question remaining is why?

[Hospital Staff / Colleague]

What was the motive for Rita Mays to kill elderly, helpless veterans who had been admitted to a hospital at their most vulnerable stage of life?

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

The plea agreement very importantly required that Rita Mays give a debrief in this case where we'd have the chance finally to get answers from her for what her motivations were. She gave two contradictory reasons. One is she did try to claim to some extent that some of these were mercy killings, that they were suffering and needed to die. But the evidence didn't support that.

[Hospital Staff / Colleague]

These veterans were not on death's door at all when they were admitted to

[George Shaw Sr.'s Son]

the Clarksburg, va. What insulin does is shut your body down one organ at a time. And my father lived for two weeks. Two weeks he suffered. That's no angel of mercy to me. That's a monster.

[Lead Investigator / FBI Agent]

The other contradictory reason was that her home life was out of control. She said that in 2017, when she started having these thoughts, her husband was in prison, her son was having issues. This somehow was meant to give her a sense of control. But she told us this did not relieve her stress and she, in fact, hoped that she would get caught someday. While the things she told us were interesting, we'll never know why Rita Mays committed these heinous acts.

[Russell Posey Sr.'s Son Vincent Posey]

Why did Rita snap? I have no idea. I have no idea why she went to the dark side and started playing God.

[Narrator]

Rita Mays might be etched in the annals of American serial killers, but the names of the men whose lives she stole, Robert Edge, Sr. Robert Kozell, Archie Edgell, George Shaw, Sr. Wah, Felix McDermott, Raymond golden, and Russell Posey Sr. Will be memorialized for a better.

[Family Member / Advocate]

They should be remembered as men who honorably served our country, who were loved and loved their families and deserved a lot better.

[Felix McDermott's Son]

I think their legacy will be helping improve how people are treated in the va, improving in a system that they all, I think, believed in.

[George Shaw Sr.'s Son]

They were respectable men. They had loving families. Their families will make sure that they are never forgotten. Never forgotten.

[Website User 3]

You know what I realized? The hardest part about building a website isn't making it look good. It's getting what's in my head onto the page. But I've been playing with the new WIX Harmony editor, and I'm impressed. You can literally just tell it what you want, or if you're picky like me, jump in and move things around yourself. The nice part is you can hop between AI and hands on editing so you end up with a site that actually looks the way you pictured it. Try it out for [e-mail] Harmony.