'Selfish' HIV sufferer who infected two women is jailed for seven years
A 28-year-old man who infected two women with the HIV virus has been jailed for seven years. X had unprotected sex with the two victims, who cannot be identified, despite knowing that he had the disease.
Judge Huw Davies QC told X he had been “selfish to a degree that beggars description”.
“The harm the victims suffered was of the worst kind,” Judge Davies told X as he sent him down at Swansea Crown Court on Friday. “You were diagnosed with HIV in 2005 and from that moment you were given every kind of treatment and support that could be offered including anti viral drugs and clear advice on how you should conduct yourself toward any sexual partner.”
The judge said X, of Matthew Street, Swansea, cooperated with doctors at first but after around a year “you immersed yourself in a party lifestyle involving drink and drugs”.
The judge said X had sex with the victim he called Miss A after meeting her in a nightclub. He said the consequences for her were grave telling the court: “She’s anxious about taking her medication and petrified others will find out about her situation and that she will be stigmatised.
“She’s struggled with her relationships with men and says one simply stopped calling after she made the necessary disclosure. She feels her confidence has been crushed.”
The judge said the other victim, Miss B, sat in a bath for four hours after finding out from a blood test she had the disease. She said in her victim impact statement: “I was crying I felt so dirty.”
As well as getting seven years for the two GBH charges relating to the HIV offences X also got an additional six months in jail for unrelated drugs offences.
Judge Davies added: “A person has the opportunity to do the right thing or the wrong thing and the defendant chose even after mature reflection to do the wrong thing again and again.”
Robin Rouch, prosecuting, said Zambian born X who had lived in Swansea for many years was diagnosed with the illness as a teenager.
[Note: X was diagnosed with HIV at 15 but said his mother didn’t tell him until he was nearly 19. from: http://metro.co.uk/2015/06/13/hiv-positive-man-jailed-for-seven-years-for-having-unprotected-sex-5243647/]
The prosecutor added X was reminded by medical staff he could be committing a crime if he did not tell sexual partners of his condition so they could make an informed decision about having intercourse with him.
[Note: This is incorrect legal advice.]
When his victims later confronted him after discovering they had the virus, one of them finding out after a routine blood test, Mr Rouch said X denied he had HIV, saying he had hepatitis B.
For several years when he was in his early 20s X stayed out of contact with his doctors and was not taking his anti-retro viral medication.
Mr Rouch said in 2007 X was found to be highly infectious with HIV having a viral load measure of 43,624.
Huw Rees, defending, said X “was in denial” over his condition.
X pleaded guilty to two counts of causing the victims grievous bodily harm.
