NHS nurse who blamed Covid stress for turning her into a pedophile is banned for life after using work computer to share indecent children’s photos and images of people having sex with animals

A nurse who blamed the Covid pandemic for turning her into a pedophile has been banned for life.

Rebecca Ruler claimed the stress and loneliness of running a respiratory unit led to her collecting indecent images of children and photos of people having sex with animals.

The 33-year-old used a work computer at Royal Bolton Hospital to share the images online between April 2021 and April 2022, later claiming to police she was forced to do so after meeting a man online.

But police discovered it was Ruler who initiated the sick calls and last year admitted to four counts of child molestation, for which she received a suspended sentence.

Now the former department manager has been struck off the nursing register for life after the tribunal ruled it had to act to ‘protect patients’ from the pedophile.

Rebecca Ruler blamed the stress of working during the Covid pandemic for sharing indecent images of children. Pictured: Ruler outside Preston Crown Court in August 2023 holding an overnight bag

Ruler was given a 12-month suspended sentence after being convicted of four charges, including making and distributing indecent images. Pictured: Ruler leaving Preston Crown Court in August 2023

Ruler, formerly of Springfield Road in Coppull, Lancashire, was caught accessing an internet chatroom while on duty at hospital after police traced her IP address.

A ruling from the Nursing and Midwifery Council last month said: ‘It is noted that the IP address used to log in to the chat site where the violations were committed could be traced back to the NHS Trust hospital where Miss Ruler worked.’

When she appeared at Preston Crown Court last August it was revealed she had done so Between April 2021 and April 2022, she downloaded 151 category A child abuse images, 101 category B images and 134 category C images. In addition, she was found to have shared five obscene articles in an online chat with five pedophiles.

While being questioned by police, she claimed that a man she was in an online relationship with had initiated the conversation and that she was using the chat to impress him.

However, the court ruled that there was no coercion and it was Ruler who had initiated the discussions by expressing her sexual interest in children, it was reported.

Preston Crown Court heard Ruler had been on the front line of the Covid crisis, working as a ward manager at the Royal Bolton Hospital.

Kim Obrusik, defending, said: ‘She encouraged contact from men in relation to these types of discussions because she realized it was a way to get male attention.

“She felt like she would never get any sexual interest from men and that’s how she got that interest.”

She added that Ruler’s depression was exacerbated by having to endure the Covid pandemic as she saw patients dying alone on a daily basis without their friends and family, the Daily Star reported.

“As we emerge from the pandemic, it is easy to forget the horror of what happened. The demands, both physical and emotional, are unquantifiable.” she said.

The nurse had downloaded the images to a work computer while supervising the respiratory unit at Royal Bolton Hospital (pictured)

But Peter Barr, prosecuting, said: ‘It was she who initiated the discussions by expressing her sexual interest in children. There was no coercion.’

One of the offenses Ruler admitted involved an image of “a person having intercourse with a living animal, namely dogs, which was grossly offensive, disgusting or otherwise of an obscene character.”

She was found guilty of four charges, including making and distributing indecent images of children.

Judge Richard Gioserano said at the time: “It’s one thing to seek comfort from strangers, but she knew these were pedophiles.”

He added: “Even if the distortion in your thinking could somehow be explained by the emotional toll of your work at the time, I don’t see how that can mitigate your transgressions.”

He handed Ruler a 12-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, and ordered her to carry out 180 hours of unpaid work.

She was also ordered to complete 35 days of full rehabilitation activity, including a one-to-one sex offender course, and was made subject to a five-year sexual harm prevention order and 10 years on the sex offenders register.

Following Ruler’s convictions, the Nursing and Midwifery Council established a panel in September to decide whether she should be suspended or relieved of her nursing duties. She has worked as a nurse since 2013.

The NMC panel concluded that Ruler’s crimes, which included ‘making and possessing indecent images of children and photographing adults performing sexual intercourse with live animals’, were so serious that only an injunction was appropriate.

In their decision to permanently remove Ruler from the nursing register, the NMC panel said: ‘Ms Ruler’s offending has seriously undermined public confidence in her.

“Her offense and subsequent sentence are fundamentally incompatible with the profession of registered professional nurse.

‘Only a cease and desist order will be sufficient to protect patients, maintain public confidence in the profession and uphold high professional standards.’

The Royal Bolton Hospital declined to comment.