Nurse now faces 8 murder charges in Sydney fire

The nurse accused of starting a deadly fire at a Sydney nursing home now faces eight counts of murder.

The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper reports that prosecutors on Thursday added four more murder counts against Roger Dean, who worked at the Quakers Hill Nursing Home.

Four elderly residents of the home died the day of the Nov. 18 blaze, and five more have died in local hospitals since. Police are still trying to determine what caused the death of one of the elderly residents.

The Herald said Dean elected to stay in his cell Thursday rather than make a brief court appearance. The paper says Dean again opted not to apply for bail and will stay incarcerated until the next court hearing, which is scheduled for February.

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