David Mangum, 36, from Missouri admitted to authorities that he had sexual intercourse with 300 people after being diagnosed as HIV positive. On Thursday, however, he pleaded not guilty to infecting another man with the virus. Nonetheless, more sues are anticipated to come in.
According to Seattlepi, Mangum told the detectives in Dexter that he had unprotected sex with almost 300 partners and about 60 of those sexual intercourse happened after he transferred from Dallas to Missouri a couple of years ago. Mangum has convictions of prostitutions, public lewdness, and indecent exposure in Dallas.
He told the authorities that majority of his rendezvous were from Craigslist ads. He said that he would meet up with men at truck stops, parks and other isolated locations. Police assume many were just passing through the region or truckers, and because Mangum has only little information about the men, investigators worry about the chances of finding possible victims.
"First names with no phone numbers or addresses — that's going to be a challenge," said Cory Mills, a police detector in Dexter.
Therefore, authorities sought the help of media, and since then many potential victims have come forward. However, prosecutor Russell Oliver kept mum on the exact number of people who came forward but he accounted more sues were anticipated.
Local health clinics report a surge in the number of people asking to have HIV tests. The usual one or two patients seeking to get tested each week, increased to 15 in the past week in Stoddard County, according to Debbie Pleimling, director of the county’s Health Department. Counties nearby are also reporting a sudden surge.
Missouri authorities claim that they were also working with Dallas authorities, who haven’t replied to messages from the Associated Press.
This summer, Mangum purportedly admitted to his roommate with whom he'd been romantically involved that he had been HIV-positive since 2003. Mangum’s roommate went in for testing and found out he was HIV-positive, prompting him to go to police.
Mills said Mangum appears impenitent and told police he wasn't honest for "fear of rejection."
Magnum is imprisoned on $250,000 cash-only bail. First hearing is scheduled on Sept. 26.
