A casual meeting arranged through a dating app turned into a violent ordeal for a 27-year-old civil engineer in Bengaluru, leaving him injured and robbed. Police have arrested four persons, including two minors, in connection with the incident.
The Incident
Rahul (name changed), a resident of Brundavan Layout in Chikkajala, had been using the dating app Grindr when a youth contacted him. After exchanging messages, the youth invited him to meet at Palanahalli Gate on May 1. Trusting the interaction, Rahul arrived at the location at 7 p.m. There, he found four youths who led him on foot to a secluded stretch. What initially appeared to be a casual interaction soon turned tense. One of them engaged him in conversation while another made mocking remarks.
The group took him toward a deserted area near a school. The conversation turned threatening as the group allegedly intimidated him, hurled abuses, and warned him against revealing details of the meeting to his friends or parents. They demanded a ransom to keep quiet. When Rahul refused, the situation escalated into violence. The assailants snatched his phone, and one brandished a knife, stabbing Rahul multiple times on his head, wrist, abdomen, and neck. Gaining access to his mobile phone and UPI credentials, they transferred Rs 16,000 from his account to a QR code before fleeing the scene at 7:45 p.m.
Aftermath and Arrests
Bleeding and shaken, Rahul managed to call a friend, who rushed him to the hospital. Based on his complaint, Yelahanka police nabbed four persons: Darshan, 20; Sunil, 19; and two 17-year-old boys. Rahul was trapped by one of the minors. The accused confessed that they had read news about people using LGBTQ dating apps being robbed previously and conspired to rob someone.
Police said the accused are school dropouts with no criminal past. Darshan and Sunil are in judicial custody, while the minors have been sent to a government home.
