Man charged with rape and possible transmission of HIV to men in Edinburgh

A 25-year-old man faces 10 charges including four counts of rape and six of assault

All charges are believed to be related to incidents that took place in the Scottish capital last year (Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

A man has been charged with several offences relating to the possible transmission of HIV to a number of men in Edinburgh, police have said.

A 25-year-old man faces 10 charges, including four counts of rape and six of assault after appearing at a court in Edinburgh on 10 February, according to BuzzFeed News.

All charges are believed to be related to incidents that took place in the Scottish capital last year.

The man is alleged to have had unprotected sex while knowing he was HIV positive and carried a risk of transmitting the virus, yet failed to disclose this information to his sexual partners before intercourse took place.

According to the prosecution, this happened on six separate occasions with five different men. Four of those men have also been named in relation to the charges of rape.

The man has been charged with rape under Scottish law due to the fact that on each occasion sexual consent was given by the men only on the condition a condom was worn during intercourse; however the accused allegedly failed to wear condoms – a fact unbeknown to his sexual partners.

Prosecutors have argued this is intercourse by deception.

The charges are understood follow a six month investigation by Edinburgh police, BuzzFeed reports.

A Police Scotland spokesman confirmed the charges saying in a statement: “A 25-year-old man has been arrested and charged with a number of crimes including assault and sexual offences following an investigation by police in Edinburgh.

“He appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court on Wednesday 10th February and was remanded in custody.”

The man was remanded in custody until a second court appearance on 18 February after which he was released on bail, police say.