Former top doctor at Interior Health convicted of sexual assault of child
The former top doctor at Interior Health has been found guilty of sexual assault and sexual interference in a case involving a child in Alberta.
Dr. Albert de Villiers, who appeared in court today via video from his home in Kelowna, was chief medical officer of health in Alberta’s north zone for 16 years before he became chief medical health officer for B.C.’s Interior Health in 2020.
He was arrested in 2021.
During a judge-alone trial in January, an 11-year-old boy testified de Villiers showed him pornography and touched him several times at the doctor’s home in Grande Prairie, Alta., between 2018 and 2020.
The boy, whose identity is protected by a publication ban, disclosed the allegations to his parents two years later.
Court of King’s Bench Justice Shaina Leonard has ruled that de Villiers sexually assaulted the child as few as five times and as many as eight times.
The justice said the child and his parents were credible in their accounts of what transpired, but de Villiers was not so credible, saying his defence consisted of “bare denial.”
A date for sentencing will be set Feb. 13.
Interior Health (IH) has said de Villiers, 54, was placed on general paid leave on June 9, 2021, then reassigned to administrative duties four months later.
IH issued the following statement in response to the verdict in Grande Prairie and the status of de Villiers employment:
“Interior Health is now aware of the guilty verdict issued today regarding Dr. Albert de Villiers. Given the leadership and public-facing role of the chief medical health officer, and the critical importance for the incumbent to comply with all respects of professional standards, it is Interior Health’s position that a person convicted of criminal charges of this nature is unable to fulfill the duties of the position. Due to privacy laws, and the fact that the matter involving Dr. de Villiers continues to be before the courts, we are not able to provide further comment,” the statement from IH read.
(Files from The Canadian Press)