TEL AVIV - A Tel Aviv district court convicted 31-year-old Ghanese citizen Chris Sarpo of raping three women and deliberately infecting two of his victims with the HIV virus.
Judges rejected Sarpo’s defense, in which he claimed that he had been framed by his accusers and the police.
In 1997, Sarpo was found guilty of raping an 18-year-old woman in Eilat, after she ended a two-month relationship with him. Two months after the assult, the woman discovered that she was HIV positive.
She informed Sarpo and asked him to undergo an HIV test, telling him she believed he had infected her with the virus.
Sarpo is also accused of having unprotected sex with willful disregard with a further three women.
Man knew he was HIV-positive, accusers say
Judges Sarah Barush, Tahiya Shapira, and Sheli Timan said that Sarpo was fully aware that he was an HIV carrier and that he was obligated to use a condom during any sexual contact with others.
Sarpo’s defence was dismissed as inconsistent and not credible by the judges.
“The mission of making up a credible defense in hindsight of the act was almost impossible, and it was difficult to follow your answers and logic during the trial. We heard many made up and irrelevant stories, as well as insignificant, evasive and long answers that were detached from reality,” said Judge Shapira
.
State prosecutor Idan Druyan said that the sentence in the case would be extremely important due to the message it would send.
“Those who suspect they are HIV positive must test themselves and use a condom, otherwise they may find themselves in court,” said Druyan.
