Tuesday January 14, the La Roche-sur-Yon criminal court delivered its verdict in a painful case. A 28-year-old man from Ivory Coast was found guilty of voluntarily transmitting HIV to three women between 2016 and 2017. Sentenced to five years in prison, four of which were closed, he however escaped a warrant deposit, raising questions.
Deliberate transmission despite knowledge of one’s illness
According to 20 Minutes, carrying the virus since his birth, transmitted by his mother, the defendant discovered his HIV status at the age of 15. Although he started antiretroviral treatment at that time, he stopped taking it upon his arrival in France, where care is nevertheless covered. Despite knowing his condition, he had unprotected sexual relations with several women, infecting three of them.
Damning testimony in court
During the hearing, a victim aged 18 at the time of the facts reported that the man had insisted on having unprotected sex, while knowing that he carried sexually transmitted diseases. One of the lawyers for the civil parties expressed her fears about the possibility of other victims. “I was unconscious at the time. It’s unfair. I only thought about myself,” said the defendant, trying to explain his behavior.
A treatment abandoned in mainland France
According to his lawyer, the man stopped his antiretroviral treatment upon his arrival in France, where he lived without papers. The medicines, fully reimbursed in France, could have considerably reduced the risk of transmission of the virus.
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