Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2003. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
San Francisco Chronicle - Saturday, October 18, 2003
Charlie Goodyear, Chronicle Staff Writer
Police arrested 39-year-old Remond Frederick at his home on Thursday afternoon after receiving a complaint in August from one of the women.
During their investigation, police discovered that Frederick had married twice and conducted extramarital affairs while aware of his HIV status, according to Pittsburg police Inspector John Conaty.
"Essentially, it strikes me as someone with a weak constitution," Conaty said. "He doesn't want to tell them. He's afraid he'll lose potential romantic partners."
Police did not identify by name any of the women allegedly involved in the complicated case. Conaty said Frederick's second wife has contracted AIDS from her exposure to him. The two women with whom he allegedly had affairs have not tested positive for HIV so far.
Investigators traced Frederick's sexual history back to 1996, when he began an affair that lasted for about a year until his wife called the woman to tell her he was married.
Two years later, Frederick saw the woman during a chance encounter and told her that his wife had died of pneumonia. The two resumed their affair.
In May 2000, Frederick tested positive for HIV, but, according to police, did not tell his girlfriend. In the meantime, she had become suspicious about how his wife had died. She obtained the death certificate and discovered that the cause of death was AIDS-related pneumonia.
When the girlfriend confronted Frederick, he confessed to being HIV- positive, according to Conaty. But the couple continued to date, and they married in October 2001 .
But even while married to a woman who knew and accepted his medical condition, Frederick began another affair, according to investigators. They say Frederick's second wife learned in February that he was cheating on her. She called his new girlfriend and told her that not only was he married, but also HIV-positive.
That call prompted the paramour to report Frederick to the Emeryville Police Department. But for reasons unclear to authorities in Contra Costa County, charges were never filed against him in that Alameda County city. A spokesman for the Emeryville Police Department could not be reached for comment on Friday.
Finally, in August, Frederick's second wife learned he was having an affair with yet another woman -- living in Hayward -- who was also warned. She reported him to police in Pittsburg, triggering an investigation that resulted in criminal charges.
The five misdemeanor counts carry a maximum 2 1/2-year prison term, said Contra Costa Deputy District Attorney Dara Cashman. Frederick's case is the first such prosecution in Contra Costa County, she said.
Frederick, who worked at a bakery in the East Bay, is being held at the county jail in Martinez in lieu of $500,000 bail. He made a brief appearance in a Pittsburg courtroom on Friday but did not enter a plea. He has been referred to the Contra Costa public defender's office, but a lawyer has not yet been assigned to his case.
Frederick's wife did not return calls seeking comment on Friday.
Police do not believe that Frederick was seeking to infect a large number of women. "We haven't uncovered anything to indicate that that's the case," Conaty said. "It's not one of those situations where he's a serial infector."
E-mail Charlie Goodyear at cgoodyear@sfchronicle.com.
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