British man gets life sentence for intentionally trying to infect his victims with HIV

A British man who intentionally tried to infect his partners with HIV has been sentenced to life in prison, the BBC reports. He faces a minimum term of 12 years.

Daryll Rowe, 27, sabotaged condoms or had unprotected sex with 10 men, then taunted his victims by revealing he was "riddled" with the virus, which can develop into AIDS. "I have HIV. Lol. Whoops!" he texted to one victim. Of the 10 victims, five ultimately contracted the virus. Rowe is the first person in England to have been sentenced to such a crime.

A hairdresser, Rowe was diagnosed with HIV in April 2015, but avoided treatment that would have made him less contagious. "I never had in my mind before, during, or after any of the sex that I wanted to pass on HIV to anybody," he told the court, despite the apparent evidence in his text messages.

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Rowe was convicted of five counts of grievous bodily harm with intent and five counts of attempted grievous bodily harm, The Guardian reports.