On 27 January 2026, the Akhangaran District Criminal Court of Tashkent Region, Uzbekistan, convicted a woman under Article 113(4) of the Criminal Code for knowingly placing another person at risk of HIV infection.
The court found that the defendant had been diagnosed with HIV on 13 May 2014, registered with the regional AIDS centre, warned of transmission risks, and informed of her legal obligation to disclose her status to sexual partners. However, between 2019 and 2022 she entered a civil marriage with a male partner, engaging in repeated unprotected sexual intercourse without timely disclosure of her HIV status. The male partner ultimately contracted HIV and was registered in the HIV database in January 2024. He testified that he had been informed of her status before cohabitation, agreed to live with her out of affection, and bore no civil claim against her.
At trial, the defendant fully admitted guilt, expressed remorse, and emphasized that she had not infected anyone else. She explained that she initially used protection with the partner but later ceased at his request. The court reviewed witness testimony, medical records, official warnings regarding criminal liability for HIV transmission, and other materials. It concluded that the legal qualification under Article 113(4) was correct.
In sentencing, the court considered mitigating factors including the defendant’s confession, remorse, personality, and the absence of claims from the affected person, alongside aggravating factors such as intentional conduct. Applying Article 57 of the Criminal Code, the court imposed a sentence below the statutory minimum.
The defendant was sentenced to 3 years and 1 month’ imprisonment in a general-regime correctional colony. The term of imprisonment was calculated from 11 May 2023 (to run concurrently to another sentence). Preventive detention measures remained in place. The judgment may be appealed within ten days.
