Police in the Australian state of Victoria have arrested 35 individuals — primarily males aged 13 to 20 — for allegedly targeting victims using gay dating apps.
According to police, over the past eight months, the alleged perpetrators deployed fake profiles on dating apps to lure gay men to locations where they were then assaulted, robbed, and subjected to homophobic abuse.
In some cases, the attacks were filmed and shared on social media, reports the Star Observer.
“These incidents have occurred in various suburbs across Melbourne, including Manningham, Casey, Hume, Moorabbin, and Knox,” Victoria Police said in a statement.
The alleged perpetrators face multiple charges, including armed robbery, false imprisonment, violent disorder, affray, causing injury, and other assault-related offenses.
Several have already appeared in court. Others are expected to appear in court in the coming weeks.
Those arrested include:
A 16-year-old boy facing charges of intentionally causing injury, recklessly causing injury, and possessing a prohibited weapon without lawful excuse.
A 17-year-old boy facing charges of intentionally causing injury, recklessly causing injury, and possessing a drug of dependence.
Two 16-year-old boys and a 15-year-old boy charged with recklessly causing injury.
A 13-year-old boy, a 14-year-old boy, and a 15-year-old boy arrested for kidnapping and armed robbery. Two of the boys were charged and released on bail, while the third was released pending further investigation.
Seven 17-year-old boys arrested for armed robbery, violent disorder, and false imprisonment. Two of the boys were charged and released on bail, while the remaining five were charged on summons to appear in court on a later date.
Four 19-year-old males from Bayswater, Lyndhurst, and Cranbourne East arrested for armed robbery. Three were charged and released on bail, while the other was released pending further investigation.
Police have collaborated with dating app companies to publish safety information and reporting tools. However, authorities stressed that victims should report incidents directly to police, as app-based reports do not trigger official investigations.
“There is absolutely no place for this type of concerning behavior in our society,” Victoria Police Acting Superintendent Carolyn Deer said in a statement. “It will not be tolerated. Everyone has a right to go about their lives, meet new people, and start a relationship in safety.”
She warned app users to be vigilant by protecting their identities and location and verifying another person’s identity before meeting up with any person they don’t personally know.
Victoria Police are urging anyone with information about the attacks — or possible victims of yet-unreported attacks — to contact police via Crime Stoppers at 1-800-333-000 or by submitting a confidential report through Victoria Police’s online portal.
Attacks against gay and bisexual men using dating apps are a frequent occurrence in various parts of the globe, including the Netherlands, France, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, and the United States.
The perpetrators frequently post videos of the assaults to social media platforms like Snapchat and TikTok.
It is unclear exactly why the social media trend has become more common, although some attribute it to suggestions by influencers seeking to convince impressionable youths to carry out the attacks against gay men, whom they see as dangers to minors.
In the United States alone, 11 Illinois teenagers were arrested and charged with felony crimes for allegedly assaulting two men. The males, all 16 or 17, reportedly lured the men to two separate locations in July using a gay dating app.
Similarly, in Maryland, at least 15 Salisbury University students, aged 18 to 21, were charged with hate crimes for allegedly luring a gay man on Grindr to an off-campus apartment where they brutally beat him.
Ten pleaded guilty to false imprisonment and second-degree assault charges and were sentenced to jail time ranging from two days to one year. The remaining five will go to trial and contest the charges against them at a later date.
Canada will lift restrictions that have prevented some gay and bisexual men from donating sperm by eliminating questions about recent anal sex from its screening process.
Health Canada, the federal department responsible for national health policy, said that beginning this fall, potential sperm donors will no longer be asked whether they have recently had anal sex with a new partner or multiple partners. Instead, all donors will be rigorously tested for infectious diseases, including HIV and hepatitis B and C.
Supporters of the change argue that asking whether a donor has engaged in anal sex does not accurately measure risk because it fails to account for condom use or preventive medications such as pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP. The screening questions also did not distinguish between donors with new or multiple partners and those in monogamous relationships with HIV-negative partners.
A 20-year-old Brooklyn smoke shop employee has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for fatally stabbing gay professional dancer O'Shae Sibley at a Midwood gas station in 2023.
Last month, a Brooklyn jury found Dmitry Popov, who was 17 at the time of the stabbing, guilty of manslaughter as a hate crime for killing the 28-year-old Sibley during an altercation fueled by anti-gay animus.
Popov was also convicted of second-degree menacing, second-degree aggravated harassment, and fourth-degree criminal possession of a weapon. But he was acquitted of the most serious charge, second-degree murder as a hate crime.
According to evidence presented at trial, Popov and two friends encountered Sibley and his friends at a Mobil gas station on July 29, 2023, and began harassing them for dancing and voguing to music while filling up their car. Sibley and his friends were returning from a day at the beach.
The three youths hurled homophobic and anti-Black slurs at the men, telling them to "Get that gay shit out of here" and mocking their appearances and effeminate mannerisms.
Derek Chadwick, co-founder of the gay dating app Goose, has left the company, saying its direction no longer aligns with his original vision.
Launched in June, Goose marketed itself as a rival to Grindr, distinguishing itself from the dating and hookup app for gay and bisexual men by emphasizing genuine relationships and connections, according to Attitude.
Goose's official Google Play description says the app allows gay men to "discover guys through shared places, interests, friends, and moments happening around you."
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