Former IH top doctor guilty of sex crimes
GRANDE PRAIRIE, Alta. — A former top official for Interior Health has been found guilty in Alberta of sexual assault and sexual interference of a child.
Dr. Albert de Villiers, 54, appeared in court Tuesday via video from his home in Kelowna. He was the top public health doctor in Alberta's north zone for 16 years before he became chief medical officer of health for B.C.'s Interior Health in 2020.
He was arrested in 2021 when he was managing COVID-19 vaccine delivery in British Columbia during the height of the pandemic.
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 two years later.
De Villiers denied showing the child pornography and said during his testimony that they once watched a video about the life cycle of marsupials.
"I have significant concerns about (de Villiers') explanations for some of the events," said Court of King's Bench Justice Shania Leonard in her decision. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Feb. 13.
Interior Health has said de Villiers was placed on general paid leave on June 9, 2021, then reassigned to administrative duties four months later.
“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,” the health authority said in an unsigned statement on Tuesday.
“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.”