A man who knowingly infected his then-partner with HIV was extradited to the UK and sentenced to three years in prison.
Jermaine Scott, a Jamaican-born man, was sentenced to three years in prison for the incident yesterday at Chester Crown Court after pleading guilty to grievous bodily harm.
Scott was diagnosed with the virus in 2005 and was given medication to control the condition and keep it from spreading to others.
The victim previously had a relationship with Scott, which they resumed in 2009, four years after his diagnosis.
However, Scott did not take his pills on a regular basis or inform his victim that he was infected with HIV, and he proceeded to have unprotected sex with her, infecting her with the virus.
Scott fled Cheshire after she tested positive for the virus, prompting a police manhunt.
When he was arrested in 2011, police discovered that they lacked “sufficient evidence to charge him,” and he was released, only to be deported back to Jamaica nine months later after he was discovered to be in the UK illegally.
Meanwhile, his victim, who was infected with the virus and taking pills to control her condition, requested that the case be reopened.
Police worked with medical experts to identify a ‘number of genetic links between the strain of HIV diagnosed in the victim and that of the offender.’
After these were established, police were able to charge Scott with grievous bodily harm in February 2020, and he was extradited back to the UK in 2022.
Det Sgt Emma Myers said after the sentencing that the victim would “live the rest of her life forever marred by Scott’s actions.”
‘It has taken more than 12 years to get here, and having supported the victim throughout the investigation, I have seen firsthand the pain and suffering that she has endured, both physically and psychologically,’ she said.
‘Scott’s actions have also affected her relationships with others and she no longer trusts men.
‘While no sentence will ever be enough, I do hope that the fact that Scott is now behind bars and has been held accountable will provide her with some closure.’