AIDS man on Thai sex spree

(##include msid=43376741,type=11##)CHAIYAPHUM, Thailand:- A one-legged German, accused of trying to infectnearly 100 teenage girls with HIV through unprotected sex, launched a tirade ofabuse against Thai women calling them "witches" and "monkeys".Hans-Otto Schiemann, a 56-year-old former sailor fromSchweinfurt in Bavaria, has become a figure of hate in northeastern Thailand,with posters plastered across the town of Chaiyaphum warning young women not tohave sex with him.However, since Thailand has no laws dealing withpeople who deliberately infect others with the AIDS virus, prosecutors have onlycharged him only with immigration offences."Thai women are bad. Thaiwomen are witches and they''re monkeys," he told reporters outside the provincialcourt in Chaiyaphum, 340 km (210 miles) northeast ofBangkok.Residents say Schiemann, who has been in Thailand for muchof the last decade, offered students aged from 15 to 17 around 4,000 baht ($100)for sex as part of a campaign of vengeance against Thai women, who he blames forhis own HIV infection."As far as we can figure out, the motivationis a vendetta of revenge against the people of Chaiyaphum because he blames themfor having infected him," one of his wife''s neighbours, who did not wish to benamed, said. He also frequented karaoke bars to pick up women.Hewould cruise in his car, looking for groups of young people after school andoffering them the equivalent of their parents'' monthly wages to have unprotectedsex. They generally agreed.His core prey consisted of young girls,15 and older. "They sell their children here," he said. "The only reason I''m injail is because I had sex with a policeman''s daughter."(##include msid=43376741,type=11##)Schiemann, who was living off a German disability pension,had also offered loans to poor people in return for use of theirdaughters.A spokesman for the German embassy said Schiemann had beendetained for overstaying his visa but the embassy was not aware of otherallegations.Sura Wisedsak of the provincial health office said thataccording to Schiemann''s wife as many as 90 women had been deliberately exposedto HIV.If their other sexual partners were taken into account, thenumber of victims could be as high as 500, Surasaid."PLAYBOY"Schiemann, who refused a prison blood testto confirm his HIV status, admitted he had HIV but said he had done nothingwrong, and had merely been an attractive figure in the relatively impoverishedregion because of his wealth.He said that he had contracted HIVthree years ago and was "like heroin to girls"."I''m a playboy. I''m arich man. Everybody likes a rich man," said the ginger-haired and beardedSchiemann, who appeared in court in a brown prison shirt and navy bluetrousers."I have the right to stay here in Thailand. This is acomplete scandal. There is no justice in Thailand."He also accusedhis 30-year-old Thai wife, Jiraporn Paktaku, who has full-blown AIDS, of beingpart of a campaign to get him kicked out of the country. "She is a crazy woman,"he said. "She wants to kill me."Schiemann is charged withoverstaying a month-long tourist visa by three years and faces deportation ortwo years in jail if found guilty. After a six-minute hearing, the judge ruledhe needed a lawyer and adjourned the case until November15.Deliberate transmission of the AIDS virus is a crime in many richcountries and the majority of US states. A Texan man was sentenced to life inprison in 2003 for sexually assaulting an 11-year-old boy when he knew he wasHIV-positive.However, in many developing countries, including thosein southeast Asia where AIDS and comercial sex are rife, effective legislationto address the problem has not been passed.Sommart Troy, of Thaigroup AIDS and Social Concern, said Monday that she wanted authorities carry outan AIDS test to confirm Schiemann''s claims."We are concerned withhis rights but if you know you have contracted it and go to have sexualintercourse with someone it''s like intention to murder in general law," shesaid."I think he should be held for further investigation. It''s notyet proven he has HIV yet."