EMMANUEL VILLAFANI WORCESTER NURSE STRUCK OFF OVER CHILD PORNOGRAPHY SCANDAL

In a disturbing case that has shocked the community of Worcester, Emmanuel Villafani, a 38-year-old nurse, has been permanently removed from the nursing register following his involvement in possessing and viewing indecent images of children. The case came to light after authorities uncovered a highly disturbing video depicting a 10-year-old girl engaged in sexual acts with an adult male, which was found on Villafani's personal computer.

Villafani, a father of two, claimed that he was unaware of how the explicit video titled “Mafia sex children” ended up on his hard drive. He insisted that the file must have been downloaded accidentally, despite evidence suggesting otherwise. The incident dates back to 2007 when he was employed at the Ablegrange Seven Heights care home in Worcester. The Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) heard that the file had been stored on his computer for approximately three years before it was discovered.

The discovery was made somewhat serendipitously in July 2007 when Villafani sent his computer's hard drive to an IT company, Xytron Ltd, for repairs. A few days after the repair, Villafani contacted the company to inquire about their privacy policies concerning the files on his device. During this conversation, he expressed a desire for the file to remain unopened, describing it as “private,” which raised suspicions among the technicians.

Richard Cuthbertson, the IT technician involved, examined the hard drive and confirmed that the file could only have been created by a user of the computer. He stated that it was impossible for the file to have been downloaded accidentally. The file was created on December 5, 2005, and was last accessed on May 14, 2007. This timeline indicated that Villafani had kept the video on his device for over a year and a half, with the last access occurring just months before his arrest.

Following the discovery, Villafani was arrested and subsequently convicted in October 2007 of possessing an indecent image of a child. He appeared at Kidderminster Magistrates Court where he received a six-month suspended sentence and was ordered to register as a sex offender. The NMC's case was supported by evidence from police, who classified the content as a level 4 image, a serious category just below the most severe levels involving sadism and bestiality.

Adrianna McDonnell, representing the NMC, emphasized that Villafani was fully aware of the nature of his actions. She stated, “This nurse has no insight into what he did. This case is about child abuse. There is a 10-year-old child in this video. Child protection agencies say every time a video like this is watched, the child involved is being re-victimized.” She further criticized Villafani for not acknowledging the harm caused by such material and for failing to report it to authorities, instead choosing to keep the file on his computer for three years.

Judith Worthington, chair of the NMC, underscored the gravity of the offense, describing the contents of the video as extremely disturbing. She noted that Villafani had not yet completed the two-year suspension period and that his actions warranted a permanent removal from the nursing profession to protect the public and uphold the reputation of healthcare professionals. The decision to strike him off the register was made in light of the serious nature of the offense and the need for stringent disciplinary measures to prevent future harm.