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Former B.C. public health officer found guilty
of sexually abusing Alberta child
Offences happened when the boy was between seven and nine years old
Paige Parsons · CBC News ·
Posted: Feb 07, 2023 10:52 AM PST |
He stood trial on charges of sexual assault and sexual interference in Alberta. (CBC News)
WARNING: This article contains references to sexual abuse and may affect those who have experienced abuse or know someone affected by it.
The former chief medical officer of health for British Columbia's Interior region has been found guilty of repeated sexual offences against a young Alberta boy.
Court of King's Bench Justice Shaina Leonard found Dr. Albert de Villiers guilty of one count each of sexual interference and sexual assault on Tuesday.
De Villiers worked for 16 years as a medical officer of health for Alberta Health Services' North zone. He moved to Kelowna in 2020 to work as the chief medical officer of health for Interior Health.
During a trial last month in Grande Prairie, Alta., court heard evidence that the doctor had sexually abused his friends' child when the boy was between seven and nine years old.
In her Tuesday decision, Leonard found that de Villiers sexually touched the boy between five and eight times between June 15, 2018, and July 31, 2020.
Leonard found that the boy, now 11, was both "credible and reliable" in his account of what happened.
During the trial, the boy testified that the doctor had shown him pornographic videos and sexually touched him during a number of sleepovers at the doctor's house.
The judge found that while the child seemed confused and unclear when responding to some questions put to him by police and lawyers, he was able to describe "key details" of the offences. She said she was left without a doubt that the child had witnessed de Villiers engage in sexual acts.
U.K. police officer jailed for at least 30 years after admitting to
dozens of rapes
David Carrick pleaded guilty last month to 49 offences, including 24 counts of rape
The Associated Press ·
Posted: Feb 07, 2023 6:29 AM PST |
Former British police officer David Carrick, 48, pleaded guilty in January to 49 offences, including more than 20 counts of rape, as well as assault, attempted rape and false imprisonment. On Tuesday, a judge in London sentenced him to life in prison with a minimum sentence of 30 years. (Hertfordshire Police/The Associated Press)
A former London police officer was sentenced on Tuesday to life in prison with a minimum term of 30 years for raping and sexually assaulting a dozen women over a 17-year period.
David Carrick, 48, admitted last month he was a serial rapist in what prosecutors described as one of the most shocking cases involving a serving police officer.
Carrick, who joined the Metropolitan Police force in 2001, pleaded guilty to 49 offences, including 24 counts of rape, and charges including assault, attempted rape and false imprisonment. His crimes took place between 2003 and 2020.
The Met said his crimes had a "devastating impact" on the force, and apologized to victims after it emerged that nine allegations of rape and other crimes were made against Carrick between 2000 and 2021. He was only suspended from the force after his arrest for a rape complaint in 2021.
'Monstrous advantage'
During Tuesday's sentencing hearing, Justice Bobbie Cheema-Grubb said the former officer "took monstrous advantage of women" behind a public appearance of propriety and trustworthiness.
"You brazenly raped and sexually assaulted a number of women, some very brutally, and you behaved as if you were untouchable. You were bold and at times relentless, trusting that no victim would overcome her shame and fear to report you," the judge told Carrick.
"For nearly two decades you were proved right, but now a combination of those 12 women, by coming forward, and your police colleagues, by acting on their evidence, have exposed you and brought you low."
Carrick, who worked in the Parliamentary and Diplomatic Protection Command, used his position of power to intimidate many of his victims, saying no one would believe their word against that of a serving officer, prosecutors said.
U.K. Interior Minister Suella Braverman called Carrick's crimes "a scar" on the police.
"It is vital we uncover how he was able to wear the uniform for so long," she said.
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