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.
A Christian school in the Atlanta suburbs forced a senior to withdraw just weeks before graduation after attending her prom with a transgender boy.
Emily Wright, who until recently attended North Cobb Christian School, went to her senior prom, which was held at an off-campus venue, with a friend who didn't attend the school.
"It was off-property. I did sign a form allowing her to bring a guest," Emily's mother, Tricia Wright, told Atlanta FOX affiliate WAGA-TV, noting that the only limitation on the form was related to the age of the guest.
Ten days after prom, Emily was called into the principal's office.
A young woman was severely beaten and robbed at a suburban Chicago McDonald's after being confronted about her sexual orientation by two men.
The incident occurred on May 13 at a McDonald's restaurant in Carpentersville, Illinois. According to a news release from the village's chief of police, the incident began when two males -- one adult, one juvenile -- made derogatory comments to the victim about her sexuality.
The verbal confrontation escalated into a fight, with the men beating the victim, later identified as Kady Grass.
The altercation left the 19-year-old badly beaten and bruised, suffering from severe injuries. She was transported to a local hospital, where she was treated for leg bruises, facial injuries, a hemorrhage to her eye, and a fractured nose, reported Chicago ABC affiliate WLS.
The Texas House of Representatives voted narrowly to repeal a state law criminalizing "deviate sexual intercourse with another individual of the same sex" despite the fact that it's been technically unenforceable for over two decades.
On May 16, lawmakers voted 59-56 to repeal the state's 1973 infamous anti-sodomy law, which was rendered unenforceable, along with all other state-level-sodomy bans, in a 2003 U.S. Supreme Court decision, Lawrence v. Texas.
Four members voted present, while 31 others had excused absences.
The bill passed on a preliminary vote on the day prior by a much larger 72-55 margin, reports the Texas Tribune.
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