The victim of a man convicted of deliberately infecting his partners with HIV has told how his life ‘fell apart’ as a result – causing him to lose his job, home and place at university.

The man, who was 26 at the time, had been in a short-term relationship with Brighton hairdresser Darryl Rowe, which he believed had been ‘loving’ and ‘real’.

He later discovered he was one of 10 victims of Rowe, who was deliberately spreading HIV by either having unprotected sex with partners, or by tampering with condoms.

It was only when he was contacted by a local sexual health clinic a couple of months after their relationship had ended, and asked to attend for an immediate HIV test, that he discovered he had been a victim.

Now 28, the man, who lives in Croydon, has been awarded £22,000 in damages from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority (CICA), having made a claim through specialists Hudgell Solicitors.

He says it has taken two years to start rebuilding his life. A spiral of depression lead to him missing work, losing his job, his home and his place on his university course.

“I’ll never ever be able to understand of comprehend why Darryl did this to people and it has shattered my trust in people. I’ve never been able to get my head around it and I don’t think I ever will,” said the victim.

“The crazy thing when I look back is that he seemed such a genuine person. He seemed to be the one more committed. I liked him and but he seemed more into the relationship and the more affectionate and jealous.

“He’d often say I didn’t show him enough affection, so his feelings for me seemed very real, and I was certainly of the opinion that we were exclusively seeing each other. Despite this there was obviously nothing real at all, as all the time he was with me to infect me.”

Your Local Guardian:

Rowe attending court

Rowe was sentenced to life with a minimum term of 12 years in April having been found guilty of of five grievous bodily harm with intent charges, and another five of attempting to do so.

Police questions him after two HIV patients at a Brighton sexual health clinic provided similar descriptions of the person they had sex with.

Rowe initially denied the allegations and police issued a public health warning, asking men who had had sex with a man matching his description to contact the authorities. He then went on the run in November 2016, targeting two more men in the north-east while using a fake name.

When he was finally arrested, he was found with a rucksack of sabotaged condoms.

“Finding out he had been arrested and then charged with this stuff was just completely mind blowing. I was being told I had HIV, but not only did I have that to contend with mentally, but also how it had happened and why,” the man added.

As part of a research study into new HIV treatments, and from continued daily medication, the man is managing the HIV successfully and says he is ‘healthy and well’. It has no physical impact on his day to day health, and he has been told it won’t impact on his life expectancy, but having HIV has already had a devastating effect on his life.

“Living with HIV is not as hard as living with the stigma,” said the man.

Since moving to Croydon he has secured a university place again to study game design, and following counselling through the Terrance Higgins Trust, which supports people living with HIV, is feeling positive again.

Your Local Guardian:

Victoria Neale

Victoria Neale, a specialist in handling claims to the CICA at Hudgell Solicitors, said: “There can be no doubt that our client has suffered significantly, both physically and psychologically, as a result of the actions of Darryl Rowe.

“Although no amount of money can lessen the impact of what happened to our client in this case, it will go some way to helping him rebuild his life, having found himself running into in financial difficulties in the aftermath of what had happened to him."