[Update]Sweden: British man sentenced to 14 years for HIV transmission

A British-born man has been jailed for 14 years in Sweden for infecting two young women with HIV and 14 other counts of HIV exposure.

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Christer Merrill Aggett, 32, who has lived in the country since childhood, was also sentenced for six offences of underage sex.

The Solna District Court in November had found Aggett guilty of the charges, but ordered that he undergo psychiatric examination before sentencing.

Aggett was charged in October with two counts of aggravated assault for allegedly infecting two girls with whom he had sex without telling them he was HIV-positive.

He was also charged with aggravated assault, or “exposing others to danger”, by having unprotected sex with more than a dozen other women between 2001 and 2006. They were not infected with HIV.

Six of them, however, were under the age of 15, the legal age of consent in Sweden, when the sexual encounters took place.

He had confessed to most of the charges, but not to having had sex with underage girls, saying he was unaware they were so young.

Police suspect Aggett had been in contact with at least 130 women he met via internet chat rooms.

A British citizen with HIV has been convicted of serious assault after having unprotected sex with 16 young girls, two of whom contracted the virus.

Merrill Christer Aggett, 32, was found guilty by Solna District Court on Thursday of two charges of serious assault, 13 charges of attempted assault, six charges of sexual exploitation of a minor, one minor narcotics offence and two charges of driving without a licence.

The trial is to be resumed next month after the court ruled that Aggett should now undergo a psychiatric analysis, which is scheduled for completion in mid-December.

If found to suffer from a psychiatric disorder, he will sentenced to secure psychiatric care rather than prison.

Aggett is believed to have contacted 130 girls between 2002 and 2006 via internet chat sites.

Two young girls were diagnosed as HIV positive after sleeping with Aggett. Prosecutors successfully argued that he should be convicted of serious assault for infecting the girls.

Aggett also faced charges of attempted assault for having unprotected sex with other young girls, none of whom were infected. Many of them were under 15 when they slept with him.

The British citizen, who has lived in Sweden since he was a child, was arrested in the early summer. Aggett himself was diagnosed as HIV positive in 1992.

The prosecution of an HIV positive British citizen believed to have slept with a large number of teenage girls he met on the internet is to be launched in Stockholm on Thursday.

Merrill Christer Aggett, 32, has been charged with serious assault and sexually exploitation of a minor. He is believed to have contacted 130 girls between 2002 and 2006 via internet chat sites.

Two young girls have been diagnosed as HIV positive after sleeping with Aggett. Prosecutors are arguing that he should be convicted of serious assault for infecting the girls.

Aggett is also facing charges of attempted serious assault for having unprotected sex with around ten other young girls, none of whom were infected. Many of them were under 15 when they slept with him.

The British citizen, who has lived in Sweden since he was a child, was arrested in the early summer. Police have since then been trying to establish how many women and girls he might have slept with. Aggett himself was diagnosed as HIV positive in 1992.

Neither police nor prosecutors were giving details of the case on Thursday.

“The prosecutor has requested that the entire investigation be classed as secret, out of consideration for those involved. For this reason I am prevented from commenting on the investigation,” said Hans Strindlund of Stockholm Police.

Strindlund added that he was surprised that the prosecution wanted such a high level of secrecy, saying he understood public interest in the case.

“This is an awful tale, in which the man who has been charged is suspected of subjecting a lot of young women to the risk of being infected with HIV. Thank goodness only a few were infected,” he said.

Strindlund has previously revealed that police have questioned most of the women in Aggett’s contact list. Of approximately 100 women questioned by early August, ten had slept with him. The others had only chatted with him online or met him in person but not had sex.

The prosecutor’s request for secrecy will be considered by Solna District Court on Thursday.