The Associated Press; 50 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10020 - Thursday, April 17, 1997 15:20:00 PM
Mans Hulden, Associated Press Writer

On Thursday, the seriousness of the case against him became clear, with police saying he faces multiple counts of attempted murder.

Steven Thomas, 35, was arrested early this year and has been on trial behind closed doors since Jan. 23. But because of the Finnish legal system, the charges had been secret until Thursday.

Officials previously said only that the charges stemmed from Thomas' having slept with dozens of women who were unaware of his medical condition.

Chief Inspector Terho Maki of the National Bureau of Investigation told The Associated Press that the trial is expected to end late next month. He refused to specify how many women had pressed charges, or how many counts of attempted homicide were involved.

Earlier, he told the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper that the numbers were in the triple figures.

"I don't want to exaggerate or create hysteria, but Thomas must have had sex with at least 100 women," Maki told the Helsingin Sanomat newspaper of Helsinki in January.

Thomas came to Finland in October 1991 and worked as a doorman at bars and popular nightspots, Maki said.

Investigators say they have proof that Thomas knew about his infection since early 1993. He faces a 15-year prison sentence if found guilty.

Such closed-door proceedings are not unusual in Finland.

The case has drawn media attention and debate in Finland, partly because Thomas' picture was published in Finnish newspapers. Criminal defendants are often granted anonymity.

"Helsinki police say that everyone who has had unprotected sex with this man should contact the police," read one newspaper headline printed next to Thomas' picture.

Thomas is black, and there was some debate in the news media over whether publication of the picture represented racial bias in this country filled with fair-skinned, blond-haired people.

Several well-known blacks who live in Finland, including an actor, a professor and a professional basketball player, protested the publication of the picture.

"It was an unfortunate coincidence that Thomas is black," Maki told the Associated Press. "People may think that there was some other reason for publishing his picture than solving a crime. Any such speculation is justified, but in this case, it's not true. Everyone is treated equally."

Fewer possible victims would have come forward had the picture not been published, Maki said. "This way, many people became aware of their carrying a serious disease."

In 1990, a Helsinki court sentenced a Ugandan man to 11 1/2 years in prison for infecting several women with the AIDS virus. His picture was not published.

Finland has one of the lowest number of AIDS cases and HIV infection in Europe. Last year, 25 people died from AIDS, a drop of 20 percent from 1995.

Copyright 1997/The Associated Press. Reproduced with permission. Reproduction of this article (other than one copy for personal reference) must be cleared through the Permissions Desk, The Associated Press, 50 Rockefeller Plaza, New York, NY 10020.
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