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.
The Metropolitan Police Department is investigating an assault in Logan Circle in which a man allegedly threatened violence against a passerby in what may have been a hate crime.
The incident happened around 10:30 a.m. on September 15 at 14th and R Streets NW. Police say the suspect, identified as 39-year-old Marshall Baxter, jumped in front of the victim -- a neighborhood resident -- and swung his fists, narrowly missing them.
According to an MPD press release, Baxter, who has no fixed address, allegedly shouted a homophobic slur at the victim.
Sawyer Hemsley, co-founder and chief branding officer of Crumbl Cookies, recently came out as gay after an influencer's viral TikTok speculated about his sexuality.
Hemsley, who launched the billion-dollar cookie chain in 2017 with his cousin Jason McGowan while a student at Utah State, has become a prominent face of the brand on TikTok.
Hemsley addressed the speculation in an Instagram post, writing, "here have been people online trying to define me, twist things, and share conversations that feel harmful. Instead of letting others write my story, I want to share it in my own words. The truth is, over the past few years I've come to understand and accept that I'm gay."
Authorities say the alleged gunman in a mass shooting at a North Carolina waterfront restaurant -- which left three people dead and at least eight injured -- reportedly embraced anti-LGBTQ conspiracy theories.
The shooting took place around 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 27, at the American Fish Company in Southport, North Carolina, a popular waterfront bar that once appeared as a filming location for the movie Safe Haven.
Investigators allege that the suspect, 40-year-old Nigel Max Edge, was piloting a white center-console boat through a busy stretch of the Intracoastal Waterway lined with bars and restaurants. From just off the American Fish Company’s deck, he allegedly opened fire on the crowd, according to Fox News.
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