A German court on Thursday found pop
singer Nadja Benaissa guilty of exposing an ex-boyfriend to HIV,
Reuters reported.
The court said Benaissa was guilty of
causing grievous bodily harm to her former partner, with whom she had
a brief three-month affair at the start of 2004, by having
unprotected sex with him with the knowledge that she is infected with
HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.
Benaissa's two year sentence, however,
was suspended and replaced with 300 hours of community service and an
ongoing counseling program.
“I made a huge mistake,” Benaissa
told the Darmstadt court.
The 28-year-old No Angels
bandmember learned she was HIV-positive at the age of 17, but said
she hid her status for fear it would ruin her career.
“I was a coward,” she added. “I'm
sorry from the bottom of my heart. I wish I could turn back the
clock and make it all not happen.”
Benaissa's confession after her April
arrest swayed the judge to give her a more lenient sentence.