Jailed man hit with slew of sex charges
An incarcerated man awaiting trial on a web of charges related to theft from a local car dealership saw that web become much more tangled on Monday as he faces almost 50 charges for allegedly having unprotected sex with five people while he was aware he was HIV positive.
X, 52, from North Carolina with an address listed as Crawford County jail in Saegertown, was arraigned Monday before Magisterial District Judge Sam Pendolino on 12 first-degree felony counts of aggravated assault and 12 second-degree misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person for an incident on April 4, 2015; three first-degree felony counts of aggravated assault and three second-degree misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person for an incident on Jan. 1, 2015; five first-degree felony counts of aggravated assault and five second-degree misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person for an incident on June 1, 2013; two first-degree felony counts of aggravated assault and two second-degree misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person for an incident on June 1, 2014 and two first-degree felony counts of aggravated assault and two second-degree misdemeanor counts of recklessly endangering another person for an incident on Aug. 1, 2014.
The Pennsylvania Office of the Attorney General filed a total of 48 charges against X for five sexual encounters with five individuals, according to the criminal docket accompanying the charges.
A special agent with the attorney general’s bureau of criminal investigations started interviewing several men and women in the state last August to determine if X had posed serious risk to harm the public’s health by having unprotected sex with multiple partners, according to the affidavit of probable cause accompanying the charges.
All five individuals interviewed had unprotected sex with X after he told them he was not HIV positive and he was tested several times each year, the affidavit states. X allegedly told his partners he retired after serving 21 years as an Army ranger. He also told all five individuals that due to his government contracts to train special forces and sniper training for the FBI and other law enforcement agencies, he is required to be tested several times each year, according to the affidavit.
During an interview with state police last November, X admitted he lied about his military career but denied testing positive for HIV, the affidavit states.
A lab report ordered by a special agent showed X had positive test results for HIV In 1999 and 2008, according to the affidavit.
Public health law in North Carolina requires people with HIV to notify sexual intercourse and needle sharing partners since the time of infection and, if not known, notify partners within the past year, according to the affidavit. HIV positive individuals must also notify future sexual partners and refrain from sexual activity without the use of condoms.
Monday’s charges carry a $200,000 monetary bond. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for May 15 in district court.
