Robbers using Grindr to ensnare victims, Baltimore police say
Police are seeking to identify 3 suspects in a string of four different robberies in Northeast Baltimore
Baltimore police are searching for three men who they say used Grindr and other social media apps to lure people to Northeast Baltimore and rob them. The Baltimore Police Department has released surveillance photos of three suspects who they believe committed the robberies.
All four robberies occurred in or around the Northeast Baltimore’s Perring Loch neighborhood, with two occurring in the 5200-5300 block of Loch Raven Road on Oct. 25 and Nov. 6, another on Hillen Road on Nov. 10, and one on Woodbourne Avenue on Nov. 11. In the Loch Raven Road cases, the suspects lured victims to the laundry room of the building and displayed a black semiautomatic gun. Suspects also stole the victim’s car in two of the cases.
Baltimore Police Department spokesman T.J. Smith told WBAL-TV that the suspects actually drove one victim to an ATM when they discovered he didn’t have cash on his person. They then kicked the victim out of his own car and took off. None of the victims were seriously injured in the robberies.
The suspects are described as black men in their late teens or early twenties. One suspect is described as 6 feet tall, about 170 pounds, wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt and red sneakers. Another is described as 5’11,” 170 pounds with a beard and mustache wearing a dark-colored bomber jacket. The third suspect is 5’6 and was last seen wearing glasses and a black North Face jacket.
Even though the victims were ensnared by their robbers using Grindr, police are warning all people who use social media to be vigilant and exercise caution before agreeing to meet up in person.
“We don’t want people to think because Grindr happens to be an app for a specific community that this is limited to that community,” Smith said. “People will use whatever means they can.”
Police advise people with a presence on social media to inform their friends of their plans, including sending them a picture of the person you intend to meet. They also suggest meeting in a public place, in the daytime, cross-checking the person using other social media sites, and demanding detailed answers to your questions before agreeing to meet with someone. Lastly, they say, social media users should avoid being intoxicated and should trust their intuition. If something doesn’t seem right, leave.
Police are hoping that people from the community will be able to assist in identifying the three robbers. Anyone with information about the crimes is encouraged to call police at 410-396-2444.
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