Could face up to 15 years in prison for exposing partner without consent

A man in rural Missouri told police he may have exposed more than 300 people to HIV since 2003.

Prosecutors in Stoddard County, Missouri, have charged David Mangum, 36, with knowingly exposing his partner to HIV without his consent, a felony under Missouri law carrying up to 15 years in prison, CNN reports. Infecting someone with the virus can carry a life sentence. The partner, who told police Mangum lied to him about his status, has tested positive for the AIDS-causing virus.

Mangum reportedly told police in the rural town of Dexter, Missouri, that he’d had unprotected sex with at least 300 people he met online or in parks since learning he had HIV a decade ago. A local detective told CNN that finding those Mangum had exposed would be difficult since he “usually only knew his partners’ first names.”

[CNN]