Myanmar man jailed for lying about sex prior to blood donation Posted May 15th, 2008 by Raman Iyer

Singapore - A Myanmar national was sentenced to eight months in jail for lying about his sexual activities before donating blood subsequently found to be HIV-positive, news reports said Thursday.

While 47-year-old Thu Ra did not know that he had been exposed to the virus that causes AIDS, he told Singapore's Centre for Transfusion Medicine that he had not given money or gifts to a prostitute or anyone else for sex in the previous 12 months.

He also said on October 6 that that he had not had sex with anyone he had known for less than six months in the preceding year, The Straits Times said.

Deputy Public Prosecutor David Low Quan Ming told the district court Wednesday that Thu Ra had in fact had sex with a prostitute four months before donating the blood.

Thu Ra's lawyer Lee Terk Yang said that his client had taken leave to donate blood with his brother, sister-in-law and four friends on his father's 82nd birthday.

Pleading for leniency, Lee said that the potentially lethal nature of HIV was sufficient punishment.

Judge Thian Yee Sze said said it was fortunate that the tainted blood donation did not cause another person to be infected with HIV. (dpa)

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