Health News
HIV-infected man charged with failing to tell teen partner
By DPA
May 7, 2008, 23:45 GMT

Singapore - A chef infected with the HIV virus was charged in a Singapore court with engaging in oral sex with a 16-year-old without informing him of the risks, news reports said on Thursday.

In the first case of its kind in the city-state, Chan Mun Chiong, 43, pleaded guilty to the charge and another of committing an act of gross indecency with the teenager.

Failing to disclose HIV to a potential partner carries a fine of up to 10,000 Singapore dollars (600 US dollars) or up to two years in jail, or both, The Straits Times said.

The two allegedly performed the sex acts in a cubicle of a men's toilet at a shopping centre on September 15 last year, the court heard. The man faces a jail term of up to two years on the gross indecency charge.

Stiffer penalties were passed by parliament last month, but have yet to go into effect.

The health ministry has investigated similar cases in the past, but no one was prosecuted until Wednesday.