Cruel Leeds man infected woman with HIV and threatened to smash her windows if she told the police

Daniel Shaw, 43, had unprotected sex with the victim without telling her he was HIV positive, and while not properly taking his medication. He was sentenced at Leeds Crown Court today with a judge describing his actions as “pitiless and cruel”.

The victim had searched online and found a news article from October 2020 when Shaw had been jailed for 18 months for sharing sexual images and harassing previous partners. In mitigation given in court and reported in the article, it was mentioned that he had HIV.

Prosecuting, Gillian Batts said: “At no time did he tell her that he had a sexually transmitted disease or discuss using protection. She had a gut feeling that something was not right.” The victim became ill shortly after making the discovery and was diagnosed with the condition.

When she confronted Shaw, he denied it and claimed that she had been aware - before telling her that “snitches get stitches” and threatening to smash her windows. The victim contacted the police and officers from Leeds District Safeguarding Unit launched an investigation.

Shaw was arrested and repeatedly denied the offence over the course of several interviews. He told officers that the victim had been aware of his condition and that she had chosen to take the risk.

He also claimed he was regularly taking his medication, but police found overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Medical records showed he often missed appointments and failed to collect medication to manage his condition and reduce his risk of infection to sexual partners.

Shaw, of Town Street, Armley, has a number of previous convictions - including battery and harassment. He denied his guilt until his first appearance at Leeds Crown Court in April this year, when he admitted an offence of section 20 grievous bodily harm.

Judge Tom Bayliss KC said the maximum sentence he could pass was five years in prison, and he had to take into account Shaw’s guilty plea.

Sentencing Shaw to three years and four months in jail, Judge Bayliss said: "She was vulnerable - you knew your status, she did not. And you took advantage of her - her trust, and that vulnerability. You took no steps to protect her.

“You could have alerted her because you must have known there were ways and means of alleviating any risks of infection. What you did do, when she found out that you were HIV positive and chose to confront you with it, was send her abusive and threatening messages.

“Far from expressing remorse or doing anything to put it right at that stage, you made it worse. You threatened her and you did so in the most pitiless and cruel way.

“She has to live with the fact that she’s HIV positive and she has been extremely ill. She’s living with the social and the physical and the emotional effects of what comes with an HIV positive status. It’s a lifelong condition.”