About this episode

The episode explores the scandal surrounding a dangerous surgeon on the remote island of St Helena.

What happens when a dangerous surgeon arrives on one of the world’s most remote islands? How much damage can he do before he is stopped? St Helena is a small British island in the South Atlantic, over 1000 miles from the nearest landmass. It is famous for hosting Napoleon in exile, and boasts the world's oldest living land animal, Jonathan the tortoise, as one of its residents. But this tiny British Overseas Territory has been gripped with scandal. When orthopedic surgeon Dr Sergio Villatoro Bran arrived in 2015 he was supposed to revolutionise care on the island. Instead he caused unimaginable harm. Was it incompetence? Or was he deliberately causing harm? And is the government of St Helena trying to block the residents' fight for justice? Following on from the critically acclaimed The Pitcairn Trials, Luke Jones investigates another scandal unfolding in one of Britain’s most isolated territories. First episodes arrive June 28th 2026, hit follow so you don't miss this show. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

People in this episode

Host: Luke Jones

Topics covered

• true crime
• medical malpractice
• isolation
• government accountability
• scandal
• historical context

Keywords

• surgeon
• St Helena
• medical scandal
• Dr Sergio Villatoro Bran
• true crime
• government
• justice

Mentioned in this episode

Products: Jonathan the tortoise

Places: St Helena, British Overseas Territory, South Atlantic

More episodes of The Pitcairn Trials

• What Next? · July 20, 2026 · 42 min
• Hostile · July 13, 2026 · 29 min
• Lawfare · July 6, 2026 · 33 min
• Courtroom Drama · July 6, 2026 · 31 min
• Landing · June 29, 2026 · 27 min
• Driftwood · June 29, 2026 · 26 min

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