A 65 year old anaesthetist with hepatitis C, was sentenced to a total of 1,993 years in jail yesterday for infecting 275 patients with the virus. Four of them died as a result.
Juan Maeso, who will serve a maximum of 20 years, was also ordered to pay nearly one million euros in compensation to his victims or their survivors.
During the trial, which began in September 2005, it emerged that Maeso was addicted to morphine and used to help himself with shots meant for his patients before using the needle to inject the rest into them.
Maeso worked at four hospitals in the Valencia area from 1988 to 1997.
