On July 31, 2025, the Cassation Panel of the Khorezm Regional Court (Uzbekistan) reviewed the appeal of a defendant, who had been convicted by the Urgench City Criminal Court on June 16, 2025.
X, born in 1990, had previously been diagnosed with HIV and received post-test counseling in June 2020, where he was informed about prevention measures and warned of criminal liability if he transmitted the virus. However, between 2022 and 2024, he allegedly engaged in unprotected sexual relations with multiple women. One of the victims became HIV positive.
The lower court found him guilty under Article 113, Part 4 of the Uzbek Criminal Code (knowingly infecting another person with HIV) and sentenced him to six years’ imprisonment in a general-regime colony.
His defense lawyer, A. Artikov, filed a cassation appeal, arguing that the sentence was excessive given his full confession, remorse, family responsibilities, and lack of prior convictions at the time of the crimes. The appeal requested a sentence reduction under Article 57 of the Criminal Code.
After reviewing the case, the Cassation Court concluded that the verdict of the first instance was legally sound, supported by witness testimony, medical documentation, and evidence from the Khorezm Regional AIDS Center. The judges rejected the arguments for mitigation and upheld the original sentence in full, leaving the six-year prison term unchanged.
