Crime & Safety
Concord Man With HIV Accused of Having Sex With Teen Boys
Anthony Tafoya, 23, is charged with more than 40 felonies and allegedly knew he was HIV-positive when he had unprotected sex with three of the boys.
An HIV-positive Concord man has been ordered to stand trial on charges he had sex with 13-, 14- and 15-year-old boys he met online.
Anthony Tafoya, 23, faces more than 40 felony charges for alleged sex crimes against four Contra Costa County boys in 2011 and 2012, reports the Contra Costa Times, including allegations that Tafoya knew he was HIV-positive when he had unprotected sex with three of the boys.
"He is a menace," said Judge Barbara Zuniga at a preliminary trial in Martinez Tuesday. "He is a parasite on the community."
According to testimony, Tafoya apparently met the boys by responding to their ads on Craigslist.com and the dating app Grindr. He was a student at Expression College for Digital Arts and employee at Pixar Animation Studios at the time of his August 2012 arrest, according to his Google Plus profile.
Defense attorney Christopher Varnell said Tafoya was not intentionally looking for minors, but that the boys initially misrepresented themselves as being over 18. He argued that Tafoya, who has no criminal record, should not be charged with any forcible sex crimes because the sex acts were always consensual.
The next court date for Tafoya is set for June 25.
Concord police say they believe there are additional victims in the case and ask anyone with information to call Detective Tamra Roberts (925) 671-3200.
Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.
