John Schneeberger (born 1961) is a

North Rhodesia Northern Rhodesia was a British protectorate in south central Africa, now the independent country of Zambia. It was formed in 1911 by amalgamating the two earlier protectorates of Barotziland-North-Western Rhodesia and North-Eastern Rhodesia ...

n-born criminal who drugged and

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...

d one of his female patients and also his stepdaughter while working as a physician in Canada. For years, he evaded arrest by implanting a fake blood sample inside a plastic tube in his arm, which confounded

DNA test Genetic testing, also known as DNA testing, is used to identify changes in DNA sequence or chromosome structure. Genetic testing can also include measuring the results of genetic changes, such as RNA analysis as an output of gene expression, o ...

results.

Early life

John Schneeberger was raised in Northern Rhodesia (now

Zambia Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most central point. Its neighbours are t ...

) and received his medical degree at

Stellenbosch University Stellenbosch University ( af, Universiteit Stellenbosch) is a public research university situated in Stellenbosch, a town in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Stellenbosch is the oldest university in South Africa and the oldest extant ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the ...

. In 1987, he moved to Canada. He lived in the town of

Kipling, Saskatchewan Kipling is a town in southeast Saskatchewan, Canada. In provincial politics, Kipling is in the constituency of Moosomin. The town was named after the English author Rudyard Kipling. History Kipling sites which can be classed as ' heritage proper ...

and practiced in the Kipling Medical Centre. In 1991, he married Lisa Dillman, who had two children from a previous marriage. Schneeberger and Dillman had two daughters during their marriage. In 1993, he acquired Canadian citizenship and still retained his other citizenship.

Rape case

Schneeberger was accused of serious sexual crimes, and convicted after successfully foiling DNA tests several times. On the night of 31 October 1992, Schneeberger sedated his 23-year-old patient, Candice (known on ''

Forensic Files ''Forensic Files'', originally known as ''Medical Detectives'', is an American documentary television program that reveals how forensic science is used to solve violent crimes, mysterious accidents, and outbreaks of illness. The show was orig ...

'' as "Candy"), and raped her. While

Versed ''Versed'' is a book of poetry written by Rae Armantrout and published by Wesleyan University Press in 2009 (see 2009 in poetry). It won the 2009 National Book Critics Circle Award for Poetry and the 2010 Pulitzer Prize for Poetry after being ...

—the sedative he used—has a strong amnesic effect, Candy was still able to remember the rape. She reported the crime to the police. Schneeberger's blood sample was, however, found not to match the samples of the alleged rapist's

semen Semen, also known as seminal fluid, is an organic bodily fluid created to contain spermatozoa. It is secreted by the gonads (sexual glands) and other sexual organs of male or hermaphroditic animals and can fertilize the female ovum. Sem ...

, thus clearing him of suspicion. In 1993, at the victim's request, the test was repeated but the result was negative as well. In 1994 the case was closed. Candy, still convinced that her recollections were true, hired Larry O'Brien, a private detective, to investigate the case. He broke into Schneeberger's car and obtained another DNA sample, which this time matched the semen on the victim's underwear and pants. As a result, a third official test was organized. The obtained blood sample was found too small and of too poor quality to be useful for analysis. In 1997 Lisa Schneeberger found out that her husband had repeatedly drugged and raped her 15-year-old daughter from her first marriage. She reported him to the police, who ordered a fourth DNA test. This time, multiple samples were taken:

blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood in the cir ...

, mouth swab, and hair follicle. All three matched the rapist's semen. During his 1999 trial, Schneeberger revealed the method he used to foil the DNA tests. He implanted a 15 cm

Penrose drain A Penrose drain is a soft, flexible rubber tube used as a surgical drain, to prevent the buildup of fluid in a surgical site. It belongs to the "passive" type of drain, the other broad type being "active". The Penrose drain is named after Americ ...

filled with another man's blood and anticoagulants in his arm. During tests, he tricked the laboratory technician into taking the blood sample from the place the tube was planted. He was found guilty of sexual assault, of administering a noxious substance, and of

obstruction of justice Obstruction of justice, in United States jurisdictions, is an act that involves unduly influencing, impeding, or otherwise interfering with the justice system, especially the legal and procedural tasks of prosecutors, investigators, or other gov ...

, and received a six-year

prison A prison, also known as a jail, gaol (dated, standard English, Australian, and historically in Canada), penitentiary (American English and Canadian English), detention center (or detention centre outside the US), correction center, corre ...

sentence. The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Saskatchewan stripped Schneeberger of his

medical license A medical license is an occupational license that permits a person to legally practice medicine. In most countries, a person must have a medical license bestowed either by a specified government-approved professional association or a governme ...

and his wife

divorce Divorce (also known as dissolution of marriage) is the process of terminating a marriage or marital union. Divorce usually entails the canceling or reorganizing of the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage, thus dissolving the ...

d him. She also reported him to the Canadian immigration authorities. In 2003, Schneeberger was released on

parole Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...

after serving four years in prison. He was stripped of his Canadian citizenship (granted in 1993) due to having obtained his citizenship illegally, as he had lied to a Canadian citizenship judge in claiming that he was not the subject of a police investigation. In December 2003, Canada authorities revoked his citizenship and ordered his

deportation Deportation is the expulsion of a person or group of people from a place or country. The term ''expulsion'' is often used as a synonym for deportation, though expulsion is more often used in the context of international law, while deportation ...

. Being a permanent resident of South Africa, he was returned there in July 2004. He moved to

Durban Durban ( ) ( zu, eThekwini, from meaning 'the port' also called zu, eZibubulungwini for the mountain range that terminates in the area), nicknamed ''Durbs'',Ishani ChettyCity nicknames in SA and across the worldArticle on ''news24.com'' from ...

to live with his mother. According to a report by the Mercury News in Durban, Schneeberger applied to the Health Professions Council of South Africa to work in medicine less than three weeks after his arrival in Durban. The Council was considering the former doctor's registration until Schneeberger suddenly withdrew it in mid-October.

In media

His case was depicted in a 2003 true crime series, ''72 Hours'' ("The Good Doctor") on CBC, and in Canadian film, '' I Accuse''. It was also featured in an episode of ''

'' ('Bad Blood') on Court TV, now

TruTV TruTV (stylized as truTV) is an American basic cable channel owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The channel primarily broadcasts comedy, docusoaps and reality shows. The channel was originally launched in 1991 as Court TV, a network that fo ...

. The case also inspired works of fiction, including "Serendipity", a fifth season episode of '' Law & Order: Special Victims Unit'', and the first episode of the 2009 Japanese drama ''Kiina''. The case was featured on '' Autopsy'' episode 7, "Dead Men Talking" (2001) on HBO.

References

External links

The Case of Dr. John Schneeberger - Archive of published reports
from CBC News total of 8 articles dated from 1999 to 2004, published by Andrew Vachss. * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schneeberger, John Canadian rapists Canadian prisoners and detainees Zambian criminals 1961 births Afrikaner people Living people Physicians from Saskatchewan Prisoners and detainees of Canada Stellenbosch University alumni White Zambian people Zambian emigrants to Canada Zambian emigrants to South Africa Zambian people imprisoned abroad Canadian people of German descent