Man may have infected thousands with HIV

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., Dec. 28 (UPI) -- Michigan police say they've arrested a man who told them he had sex with as many people as he could over the past three years to infect them with HIV.

Authorities in Grand Rapids say David Smith, 51, was arrested after he turned himself in to police and talked about infecting sexual partners with the human immunodeficiency virus, WOOD-TV, Grand Rapids, reported Wednesday.

Smith told police there are "thousands" of victims.

Police said they are currently aware of the identity of only one of the victims and have charged Smith with just one count so far.

The alleged victim, who asked not to be identified, called Smith "a predator" and "a sociopath."

"He hits drifters," she told WOOD-TV. "He hits people who are young. He hits young women, and from what I understand, he hits men too. Those are his targets."

"I was diagnosed (with HIV) October 18, 2008," she said.

The Kent County Health Department is concerned about the number of possible victims, a spokeswoman said.

"We want to make sure that anyone who may have injected drugs with [Smith], who may have had sex with him, does come forward and get tested," Communications Manager Lisa LaPlante said. "We want to make sure that they're not spreading the virus to anyone else."