Joan Vila Dilmé was born on September 26, 1965, in Castellfollit de la Roca, a small town in Catalonia, Spain. He was the son of a working-class family that made embutido, a type of cured meat. Growing up, Vila struggled with social interactions. He was insecure about his acne and sexuality and dealt with significant tremors in his hands. Because of these issues, he often avoided making friends and socializing. After his arrest, he would mention feeling like "a woman trapped inside a man's body." This feeling was tied to his homosexuality and caused him mental distress.

As he grew older, Vila lived in several places, including a small apartment in Castelló d'Empúries. He tried his hand at various careers. He opened a hairdressing salon called Tons Cabell-Moda in Figueres, but it quickly went out of business. Vila also worked in different jobs in industries such as plastics and textiles. At one point, he even owned a restaurant named Casino de Peralada. He took various training courses in cooking, chiropractic, dressmaking, and reflexology.

Vila eventually found work as a nursing assistant at a small private nursing home called El Mirador de Banyoles. His colleagues appreciated him for being caring and attentive. He worked there for about eight months. Vila also had a short job at a psychiatric center in Salt. However, despite these jobs, his mental health began to decline. He experienced frequent panic attacks and had very low self-esteem. Vila was a heavy smoker and was diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive disorder. His tremors and sweating worsened as well.

During this time, Vila developed a strange interest in putting make-up on deceased individuals. He had several books about death and paranormal topics, which he received from a local hairdresser friend. After his arrest, authorities ordered a psychiatric evaluation. It found that he was suffering from severe depression.

Joan Vila Dilmé began his series of murders at the Fundació La Caritat nursing home in Olot in August 2009. He targeted elderly patients, mainly women aged between 80 and 96. Vila used two primary methods to kill his victims. He administered a mixture of barbiturates and drugs or gave high doses of insulin in intravenous injections, particularly to diabetic patients.

Over the next year, he continued to kill at the nursing home. Family members of the victims reported that their loved ones experienced painful and distressing deaths, with some showing signs of bleeding from the mouth. His known victims included Rosa Barbures Pujol, Francisca Matilde Fiol, Teresa Puig Boixadera, and others.

In September 2010, after a notable shift in his behavior, Vila killed Joan Canal Julià. Shortly after that, he murdered three more individuals in quick succession: Sabina Masllorens i Sala, Montserrat Guillamet Bartolich, and Paquita Gironès i Quintana. For these last three murders, he inflicted extreme pain by forcing them to ingest corrosive substances, including bleach and laundry detergent, often causing severe internal injuries. He confessed to consuming wine mixed with Coca-Cola during this period.

Vila's final victim, Paquita Gironès i Quintana, raised alarms at the nursing home because of her repeated accusations against Vila. After her death on October 17, 2010, a forensic autopsy revealed that she could not have ingested the toxic substance by herself. This led to an investigation where security footage implicated Vila, who subsequently confessed to multiple murders when interrogated by police.

Following his arrest on October 18, 2010, Vila admitted to killing eleven elderly patients during his time at the nursing home. His trial began in May 2013, where he described how the deaths made him feel powerful and claimed that he believed he was helping end their suffering. The evidence and testimonies from over 120 witnesses contributed to his conviction for all counts of murder. On June 21, 2013, he received a sentence of 127 and a half years in prison.