HOUSTON – A man who authorities say intentionally infected a woman with HIV agreed to a 30-year prison sentence as part of a plea bargain with Harris County prosecutors Wednesday.
Karim Zakikhani, 34, pleaded guilty to aggravated assault of a family member, causing serious bodily injury - a first-degree felony.
Court documents state the victim and Zakikhani both agreed to undergoing medical exams before having unprotected sex around December 2013. The woman tested negative and said she was told by Zakikhani that he was also free of sexually transmittable diseases, according to the documents.
But less than a year later, a dentist found thrush in the woman's mouth and a doctor discovered she was HIV positive. She said her only sexual partner in that time span was Zakikhani, who actually turned out to be married.
The court documents state Zakikhani infected his wife with the disease in 2009 and he had been made aware of it shortly after the diagnosis.
Zakikhani was arrested and charged in 2016.
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