By Lee Coleman
The Daily Gazette
SARATOGA COUNTY, N.Y. — A Saratoga County jury found a 28-year-old Waterford man guilty Thursday of first-degree rape and first-degree sexual abuse for raping a woman and intentionally trying to infect her with the AIDS virus.
“The defendant knew he had HIV AIDS when he raped this victim and he intended to infect her with the HIV AIDS virus,” said Saratoga County District Attorney James A. Murphy III.
The jury returned guilty verdicts against Samuel Serrano-Gonzalez of Broad Street after a seven-day trial before County Court Judge Jerry J. Scarano for incidents that happened on June 9, 2011, in the town of Waterford.
Murphy said Serrano-Gonzalez told the victim, with whom he had an earlier relationship, that he had HIV when he raped her. The Human Immunodeficiency Virus can cause Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome, which can be fatal.
“This is diabolical. He sought revenge because she left him and he couldn’t stand it,” Murphy said.
“This victim will have a lifetime of testing and uncertainty ahead of her, holding her breath every time the result of the test comes back waiting to see if she gets a death sentence from this rapist,” he said.
After the June 9 rape the victim had to take strong medicine for 30 days to try to block an HIV infection, and it made her nauseated and made her hair fall out, Murphy said.
He is calling for the maximum sentence against Serrano-Gonzalez, which could send him to state prison for more than 30 years.
During the trial, Assistant District Attorney Michele Schettino called more than 13 witnesses and presented more than 30 pieces of physical evidence. The victim testified about the violent attack and actions of the defendant.
Murphy praised the efforts of Schettino and her co-counsel, Alan Poremba.
“The jury’s verdict on the top two counts of the indictment reflect the thorough presentation by Ms. Schettino, with the assistance of Mr. Poremba,” he said in a statement. “She elicited testimony from the numerous witnesses who painted a vivid picture of this violent and horrific attack and introduced evidence to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant was guilty of these crimes.”
Schettino noted with gratitude the work of the jury and the investigation of the Waterford Police Department. She said she spoke Thursday afternoon with the victim and the victim was pleased with the jury’s verdict.
The jurors deliberated for more than eight hours over a two-day period and delivered their verdict around 3:30 p.m. Thursday. Scarano sent Serrano-Gonzalez to the Saratoga County Jail without bail.
He is scheduled to be sentenced May 17. He is facing up to 25 years on the rape conviction and up to seven years on the sexual abuse conviction.
Murphy said his office will be seeking to have the defendant sentenced as a predicate felon to the maximum sentence allowed by the statute. The law allows the sentences for these two violent crimes to run consecutively, which would result in a possible sentence of up to 32 years in state prison and up to 30 years of post-release supervision.
Serrano-Gonzalez could also be classified as a Level III sex offender, which would require him to register with the New York State Sex Offender Registry for life.
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