In April 2026, the Zangiota District Criminal Court heard the case against a defendant, who had been registered with the Tashkent Regional AIDS Center since November 2011 and had received formal warnings that exposing another person to HIV could result in criminal liability under Article 113 of the Criminal Code. According to the prosecution, she entered into a relationship and later a civil marriage with the complainant in May 2022, while concealing her HIV-positive status from him. The couple had repeated unprotected sexual relations over several years.
The complainant ultimately tested HIV-negative. Medical certificates from both the Tashkent Regional AIDS Center and the Republican AIDS Center confirmed that no transmission had occurred. Nevertheless, the court considered the offence complete because the defendant had knowingly placed another person at risk of infection.
During the proceedings, the defendant fully admitted her guilt. She explained that she had contracted HIV after visits with her first husband while he was imprisoned and later learned, following his death in 2011, that he had died from AIDS-related illness. She stated that she concealed her diagnosis from her new partner because she feared he would divorce her. She described their relationship as stable and said they had lived together as husband and wife since 2022.
The complainant testified that he only learned of her HIV status after both were summoned by internal affairs officers in February 2026. He said he had initially been angry that she had hidden the diagnosis from him, but after receiving HIV testing and counselling, he reconciled with her. He told the court that he had no claims against the defendant and requested a non-custodial sentence, explaining that he had no close relatives other than her.
The court found the defendant guilty under Article 113, Part 4 of the Criminal Code, which criminalises knowingly exposing another person to HIV. In reaching its decision, the court relied on the defendant’s confession, witness testimony, warning documents issued by the AIDS center, medical certificates, and other case materials.
Although prosecutors sought criminal liability, the court concluded that imprisonment was not necessary. It cited several mitigating factors, including the defendant’s remorse, difficult family circumstances, the absence of prior convictions, the complainant’s lack of objection, and the fact that no transmission occurred. Applying Article 57 of the Criminal Code, the court imposed a reduced sentence of three years of restriction of liberty rather than imprisonment.
Under the sentence, the defendant was ordered to remain at her registered residence in Tashkent, prohibited from attending public events or changing residence without permission, and placed under probation supervision. The court warned that violations of these conditions could result in the sentence being converted into imprisonment.
