An individual who worked as a janitor faced allegations of inserting his herpes- and hepatitis-affected genitals into water containers at a medical facility where he was employed. This person admitted guilt to one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and was subsequently handed a six-year prison sentence.
Lucio Catarino Diaz will be eligible for parole after three years, prosecutors said, according to KTRK.
The incident unfolded at a doctor’s office in Houston, where a staff member became suspicious in August after detecting an odd taste in the water obtained from the office dispenser. Suspecting contamination, she decided to discard the bottle and bring her own container to work. Despite this precaution, the replacement bottle, filled in the morning and left on her desk for the next day’s use, also developed an unusual smell over time.
By late September, a colleague noticed the abnormality when offering to refill the victim’s bottle with coffee and pointed out the yellowish color of the water inside. Subsequently, a physician at the office conducted a urine test, confirming the presence of urine in the bottle.
The office was not equipped with security cameras, so the victim purchased a hidden camera which she mounted under her desk. On September 30, the woman received video footage to her phone which allegedly showed Diaz putting his genitals in her bottle, recapping it, and putting it back on her desk.
Further footage showed him doing it at least twice more. Cops went to the doctor’s office — where Diaz reportedly confessed to tampering with the water bottles.
Ultimately, more people accused Diaz of similar actions, but he was only charged in the case in which the victim recorded him. Several of victims reportedly contracted herpes simplex 1 and hepatitis A from the incidents — both of which Diaz had.
Diaz reportedly told investigators he did it with “malicious intent,” KTRK said.
Court documents say Diaz will not have register as a sex offender when he is released. His attorney said he was “remorseful for his actions” and didn’t want to put the victims through a trial.
