More charges against Dexter, Mo. man in HIV case

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- A rural Missouri man accused of knowingly infecting another man with HIV was charged Friday with exposing three other partners to the virus that causes AIDS.

Stoddard County prosecutor Russell Oliver said 21 additional counts were filed against David Mangum, of Dexter, that accuse him of having unprotected sex with three men without telling them he was HIV-positive. Oliver said additional charges are possible against Mangum, who told investigators that he had sexual encounters with as many as 300 people since being diagnosed with HIV a decade ago in Texas.

"We're still investigating additional victims," the prosecutor said.

Mangum, 36, was arrested last month and remains jailed. His attorney did not respond to interview requests.

Mangum was arrested after a man with whom he'd been intimate tested positive for HIV and alerted police. The new counts are of a lesser charge because the new accusers are not HIV-positive.

Mangum could face up to life in prison if convicted of spreading HIV to another person, and up to 15 years in prison for risking infection to others.

Mangum allegedly told detectives in Dexter, a southeast Missouri town of about 8,000 residents, that he has had sex with as many as 300 partners since his diagnosis in Dallas. He told investigators that he met as many as 60 of those partners since he moved to Missouri in 2011.

Authorities said many of Mangum's sexual trysts in Missouri were set up through Craigslist ads, often with strangers, including truckers and others just passing through. Dexter detective Cory Mills said Mangum didn't know the names or addresses of most of his sexual partners, making it difficult to track down potential victims and urge them to get tested.

News accounts of Mangum's arrest have prompted a sharp increase in HIV testing in Stoddard County and surrounding areas, according to local health officials.