Whistleblower in HIV Sexual Assault Trial Faces Tough Questions During Interrogation

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Warning: this story contains details that may be unsettling to some readers.

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An Edmonton man who claims he contracted HIV from a local sex worker faced a barrage of questions from the defendant’s attorney on Wednesday, admitting that what he initially told police was not entirely consistent with his testimony in the court.

DN claims he became ill with the AIDS virus after two nights of unprotected sex with 31-year-old Anthony Lee Taylor, facing a charge of aggravated sexual assault.

DN identity is protected by a posting ban. On Tuesday, the first day of Taylor’s jury trial, she gave testimony for the Crown, saying she became fatally ill after her encounters with Taylor in December 2016. The Crown told jurors that Taylor was diagnosed with HIV in 2013 and he was not receiving treatment. to control your infection.

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During cross-examination Wednesday, defense attorney Sarah Terry uncovered a number of details that cast doubt on elements of DN’s story.

DN claimed he first saw Taylor after midnight on a corner in Norwood, while driving home from a friend’s house. Taylor was dressed as a woman and introduced herself as “Tatiana.” DN says he negotiated Taylor’s sale price from $ 100 to $ 60, then drove to her home, where they had oral and anal sex without condoms.

DN testified that he did not realize Taylor had a penis until they began engaging in sexual acts, and that he continued because he was “double curious.” He said he was the receptive partner for both sexual acts and that DN ejaculated on him twice, putting DN at higher risk of contracting HIV. He was diagnosed in February 2017 and said he was considering ending his life.

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Police began investigating Taylor in May 2018 and charged him that same year.

Terry revealed that police initially learned of DN’s allegations during an investigation into DN, who had been reported by an employee of an Alberta Health Services HIV program for allegedly threatening Taylor and others with HIV. Terry said there were concerns that DN could “take matters into (its) own hands.” The police finally decided not to press charges against DN

DN eventually gave police two interviews, which Terry said were inconsistent with his evidence at trial.

Citing a transcript of one of the interviews, Terry noted that DN told police that he met Taylor online, not on the street, and that he had not dissuaded him from the sale price.

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He also told a police officer that he was the insertive partner when he and Taylor had anal sex, the opposite of what he said at trial.

Terry further noted that DN did not tell police about Taylor ejaculating inside him during their first hookup, despite testifying “unequivocally” that this happened twice.

“I may not have told (the detective) this information, but I know what happened,” DN insisted.

Terry also raised issues with DN’s statements about condom use and previous sexual partners. DN at one point told police that he “always” wore protection during sex and that he had not had sex with anyone since he was diagnosed with HIV. He told police that before Taylor, the last time he had sex with someone was in 2015 and that he used a condom.

Terry noted that DN had previously told an AHS employee in February 2017 that he used condoms “90 percent” of the time and that he had had sex with at least five people in the previous three months. On the stand, DN said he had sex with a woman while using a condom in January 2017.

Taylor’s trial resumes on Friday and is scheduled to last two weeks.

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