DutchNews.nl - Guilty verdicts in HIV injection case

A 49-year-old man has been sentenced to nine years in prison for his role in the Groningen HIV case in which a number of men were deliberately infected with the virus at sex parties.

Groningen district court found Peter M guilty of causing grievous bodily harm to five men at sex parties held at his home by injecting them with HIV-infected blood. Co-defendant Hans J (39) was sentenced to five years in jail.

'They [the defendants] show a lack of respect for the integrity of the human body,' the judges were quoted as saying by news agency ANP. 'While they knew what the consequences of an HIV infection are, they made repeated attempts to infect others.'

The third defendant and Peter M's partner, Wim D (48), was given an 18 month sentence.

The three were arrested last year after a number of their victims pressed assault charges. Twelve of the victims, who range in age from their 20s to 40s, have been diagnosed as HIV positive, the court was told during last month's trial.

However, the judges said it could not be proved that the victims had developed HIV as a result of the injections, nor is there enough evidence that they had been drugged before the assaults took place, ANP said.

'Complaints about memory loss could be due to the use of the drug ecstasy and alcohol,' the judges said in their statement. 'And it cannot be ruled out that the statements have been influenced by media reporting and conversations between the plaintiffs.'

The public prosecution department, which called for jail terms of up to 15 years, is to appeal.

I feel so sorry for the victims. I can understand their lives have been changed totally.

The three guys obviously knew the results before they did the bad things. This kind of behavior should be punished in a strict way. It will be a model for future case.

By Peter | November 12, 2008 4:22 PM

Your laws are too lenient, in the Netherlands. Wouldn't this be considered a possible attempted murder?
He would've gotten a longer sentence over here in the states.

Editors note: As we understand it, the defendants were not tried for attempted murder because HIV and AIDS are not considered to be fatal in the Netherlands

By LB | November 12, 2008 9:06 PM

Amazing! HIV and AIDS sufferers is a long and drawn out painful death, if they get full blown AIDS and it's not considered fatal? That's where our 2 countries differ...

Have a Great Day :-)

By LB | November 13, 2008 3:09 PM

This is a gross miscarriage of justice. Each of the men involved in this case should be sentanced to MULTIPLE life sentences. and tachnically speaking the HIV virus has DNA, so if the gavernment wanted to they could find out if these men contracted the virus from these men.

By Rani Thompson | November 13, 2008 10:52 PM

Seems to be a general lack of understanding when it comes to medical issues - knock-on effect - Judge gives lenient sentences for what is Attempted Murder.
So ... Why did these men set out to infect others?

By Gerard | November 15, 2008 1:58 AM