THEGAYUK

Tag: Crime

All the latest breaking news crime in the UK and aboard. Browse THEGAYUK’s complete collection of news, articles and commentary on Crime.

  • Haitian LGBT+ activist found dead, foul play suspected

    Haitian LGBT+ activist found dead, foul play suspected

    According to OutRight Action International (ORAI) one of Haiti‘s most prominent LGBT+ advocates, Charlot Jeudy, was found dead at his home in Pétion-Ville outside of the capital of Port-au-Prince on the morning of Monday, November 25th.

    The organisation claims that the cause of his death is still unknown and that an autopsy must be undertaken to determine what killed Charlot.

    ORAI fears that Jeudy’s death made have been a hate crime as he had reportedly been receiving threatening and anonymous phone calls.

    Jessica Stern, Executive Director of OutRight Action International, commented:

    I knew Charlot as a bold LGBTIQ leader and fierce advocate fighting for the rights of his community. Even though the cause of death is yet unconfirmed, we fear it is part of a larger pattern of anti-LGBTIQ violence underway in Haiti, potentially focused on people visible within LGBTIQ organizations. We call on on the police to carry out an immediate, credible and transparent police investigation into the death of Jeudy Charlot. Haiti must protect LGBTIQ people from violence.

    FACSDIS, an organization that works to safeguard the rights of the LBTIQ community, is reporting unprecedented violence and attacks against people based on their perceived sexual orientation and gender identity. Four members of FACSDIS were victims of an attack on October 17, 2019, where several members sustained physical injuries.

    OutRight received evidence of a further incident: an angry mob threatened at least three members of FACSDIS on November 18.

    As a result of these and other attacks, LGBTIQ community members in Haiti are remaining at home, afraid to leave for work or school or to buy groceries, and some members of the community have even sought temporary relocation to flee the violence.

    Neish McLean, Caribbean Program Officer at OutRight Action International, commented:

    As a part of OutRight’s work with KOURAJ and other partners in Haiti, Charlot and I worked closely together. I’ll remember Charlot for his fierce and unrelenting work to end the violence and discrimination against LGBTIQ people in Haiti. His warm smile and tenacity will be missed deeply. His legacy will live on in the work reflected by the courage and perseverance of those who remain.

    Kennedy Carrillo, Caribbean Research Officer at OutRight Action International, commented:

    Charlot was one to never be silenced and his tenacity and commitment to the fight for LGBTIQ justice and equality will not be forgotten. Now more than ever we must loudly condemn his death and the continuous attacks on the LGBTIQ community in Haiti.

    LGBT Rights In Haiti

    In Haiti homosexuality and sex between people of the same sex is legal however many LGBT+ people face opposition from the strongly religious population. Roughly 80 per cent of Haiti’s population is follow Catholism, followed by Protestantism and Islam.

    There are many reported hate crimes against visible LGBT+ people.

    Complaints have been levied against the police force who, according to some, do not take crimes against LGBT+ people seriously.

    LGBT+ people have no protections in law to protect them from discrimination and Haiti does not recognise same-sex couples or marriage.

  • “Terrifying” homophobic assault leaves a man in Manchester hospitalised

    “Terrifying” homophobic assault leaves a man in Manchester hospitalised

    Police in Manchester have released an image of a man they wish to question in connection to an alleged homophobic hate crime on the outskirts of Manchester earlier in October.

    According to police reports, a man in his 20s was attacked by another man in what they are calling “an unprovoked attack”

    The assault, the police say, took place close to the entrance of Clayton Vale Park on Ten Acres Lane on Sunday 6 October 2019 just after mid-day at 12:30 PM

    The victim, who has not yet been named, was left with serious facial injuries and needed medical treatment.

    Do you know this man?

    (C) GMP / SUPPLIED

    READ NEXT PAGE 2/2

  • Daily Mail readers are doing their nut in after it reports that people who abuse trans people might get SIX months in Prison.

    Daily Mail readers are doing their nut in after it reports that people who abuse trans people might get SIX months in Prison.

    jraffin / Pixabay

    Sure as shit smells, Daily Mail readers can’t quite believe that hate crimes against LGBT+ people should be punished with a ‘harsher” prison sentence.

    Hello and welcome to Britain 2019. The Daily Mail has reported that judges in the UK now have the power to hand out “harsher sentences” for those found guilty of hate crimes against gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people.

    That “harsher” sentence actually equates to SIX months (note the capital letters). Which a tiny proportion of those who commit an actual offence will actually receive. And remember six months, will never, in reality, be six months – more like three.

    It’s worth remembering most hate crimes do not get reported in the first place and the majority of those that are reported DO NOT end up in prosecution or a trial.

    Just 8 per cent of reports actually go to trial.

    PublicDomainPictures / Pixabay

    The new sentencing policy is set against the news that hate crimes reports against trans people have risen by 37 per cent to 2333 reports while crimes reported against lesbian, gay and bisexual people has risen by 25 per cent to 14,500 reported crimes.

    The Daily Mail decided to frame the news with a title that read,”Now trans and gay hate crime will mean SIX months in jail after judges are ordered to crack down with harsher sentence” and then used domestic burglaries as a benchmark to drive a point that the sentences are longer – for crimes against the person rather than property. Surely that’s what it should be?

    Well within hours of the piece, written by Steve Doughty for The Daily Mail, there were numerous remarks in the infamous comment section of the website, most of which were decrying the news.

    “mac.attack” hailing from New Zealand, seemed concerned that a misconstrued joke could end up with us all on a slippery slope. God knows where, but we praise the liberal use of lube.

    “Quirkyandcute” seemed overly worried that police time would be wasted… because of reports that someone’s feelings were hurt.

    A “Chufton” was short but to the point, added, “complete nonsense” and “Speak for England” wrote “Gestapo Britain”… yes because punishing those who commit actual crimes will quickly lead to the rise of Hilter 2.

    SMH.

    There were the usual cries of “police state” and “madhouse”.

    Yes, people. Welcome to the UK in 2019.

  • Police are searching for these men after a homophobic attack with a corrosive substance

    Police are searching for these men after a homophobic attack with a corrosive substance

    Police in London are looking to speak to five suspects after four victims were sprayed with a corrosive substance in an alleged homophobic assault outside a KFC in Brixton.

    The attack happened back in January 2019, but following a Crimewatch appeal, Police have released footage of the men they are looking to speak to in connection with the incident.

    In total, four people were assaulted with what is thought to be a corrosive substance spray. Detectives are treating the incidents as linked.

    The footage, taken from a KFC on Brixton Road, SW9, shows five males police would like to speak to in connection with both incidents. 

    According to police reports, the attacks happened on Saturday, 19 January, with the first taking place at around 04:00hrs inside a KFC where a corrosive spray was used on two male victims. 

    The second attack happened just 20 minutes later at a bus stop close to the KFC where the CCTV footage was taken. 

    The two 22-year-old victims told police at the scene that they had been sprayed by an unknown noxious substance, thought to be a type of pepper spray, in what appears to be a hate crime attack.

    Detectives from the South Area Command Unit are continuing to appeal for both victims of the first incident to make themselves known to police to give their account of the assault, and assist with enquiries. 

    Suspect [1] is described as a black male, wearing a black beanie, grey tracksuit, with dark elbow patches and a gilet-type jacket. 

    The second suspect [2] is described as a light-skinned black male with a ‘chin strap’ beard and of a tall muscular build.

    The third male [3] is a black male who had his hood up, the top had white scribbles on it.

    Another suspect [4] was seen wearing a dark navy tracksuit with multiple white stripes on the legs.

    The final suspect [5] was a black male and of a larger build than the other men, with curly, short hair, green tracksuit trousers and a black puffa-style jacket. 

    Detective Constable Amy Cross, of Lambeth CID, the lead investigator on this case, said, “This was a completely unprovoked and targeted attack on at least two members of the public, with a further two victims not yet in contact with police. 

    “Both the attack and the homophobic motivation of this assault are abhorrent, and I appeal to anyone with any information that could assist the investigation to come forward.” 

    Anyone with information is asked to conduct Lambeth CID by dialling 101 and quoting reference CAD 1206/19JAN19.

  • Court summons for homophobic crimes have plummeted, despite soaring reports of hate crimes

    The number of court summons and charges for those arrested for hate crimes has plummeted, despite hate crime reports doubling over the last five years.

    A Freedom of Information request by the BBC’s 5 Live has found that despite the rise in homophobic hate crime reports the number of people actually going to court to face justice has fallen by 10 per cent, meaning that fewer people are being prosecuted for homophobic hate crimes, despite police calling on victims to come forward and report incidents.

    The report also found that the number of reports soared from 5800 in 2014/15 to over 13,000 reports in the last year.

    But the number of cases that led to charges or court summons fell by 10% over the same time period.

    A BBC Radio 5 Live Freedom of Information (FOI) request found that 13,530 people were recorded as the victims of homophobic hate crimes in the last financial year, compared to around 5800 in 2014/15.

    Over the same period, the number of people actually being charged or issued with a court summons fell from 1157 (20% of complaints) to 1058 (just 8% of complaints), meaning just a small fraction of those arrested for a hate crime actually land up in court or being charged with the offense.

    A hate crime is defined as “any criminal offence which is perceived, by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by a hostility or prejudice”.

    5 Live Investigations sent a Freedom of Information request to 46 police forces across the UK and received full responses from 38.

    Data from Police Scotland was only partial and not included in the analysis.

    The National Police Chiefs’ Council said that many of these crimes involved no witnesses and a lack of evidence.

    © jvanderwolf Depositphotos.com

    “Police will investigate crime reports and will pursue action against those responsible where there is evidence to do so”

    A spokesman for the National Police Chiefs’ Council said:  “Targeting someone because of their sexuality is completely unacceptable. It undermines our fundamental human right to feel safe and can have a devastating impact on victims and the wider community.

    “Police will investigate crime reports and will pursue action against those responsible where there is evidence to do so. Unfortunately, with many cases, there are often no witnesses to these crimes and scarce evidence – this may lead to police being unable to identify a suspect,” he said.

    Different parts of the country have seen more dramatic rises in reported crimes, according to the figures.

    Both West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire Police have seen reports homophobic hate crimes increase five-fold

    In West Yorkshire, there were  961 reports and in South Yorkshire, there were 375 reports over the past five years.

    The proportion of crimes that resulted in a charge or summons, however, fell over the same time, from 19% to 4% in West Yorkshire and from 10% to 3% in South Yorkshire.

    Two of Britain’s largest police forces, the Metropolitan Police and Greater Manchester Police, have also seen an increase in the number of reported crimes, while the number of cases that led to charges or summonsed fell by around a third, to 165 and 50 respectively, over the past five years.

    A spokesman from the Metropolitan Police said, “We recognise that our sanction detection rates have fallen … as many of these non-violent offences present less evidential opportunities and victims often feel that there is a barrier between bringing the matter to court and prefer to make police aware of each offence.”

    “We are committed to improving our total number of sanction detection rates and successful prosecutions and continue to remind communities to report hate crimes even if they do not want to go to court as it helps the police to provide a true picture of the abuse,” he added.

    Listen to BBC Radio 5 Live on Wednesday 11 September from Breakfast at 6 am and all day for further details.

     

  • Gay couple have glass bottle thrown at them in vicious homophobic attack

    Gay couple have glass bottle thrown at them in vicious homophobic attack

    A gay couple in Newport have told of their harrowing experience when a homophobe threw a glass bottle at them

    A young gay couple has spoken about how they were harassed when walking to their car from the railway station after a night out in Newport, Wales.

    Bleddyn Harris and David Barraclough both in their twenties were harassed by a man who hurled homophobic abuse at them on the pavement outside Newport Railway Station at about 10.30pm on the 31st August. The couple were returning from a night out. Bleddyn explained how he had given his partner his coat to keep him warm and was reaching into the coat pocket to retrieve his car keys.

    The man then apparently threw a glass bottle at the pair. Luckily the bottle missed them. The assailant then escaped the scene in a car, which had at least two other occupants.

    Speaking to Wales Online, Bleddyn Harris recalls, “We were walking back from Le Pub to my car because it was late and we were doing the usual couple things – linking arms,

    “I could see this guy from afar and he was already kicking off. In my 26 years as a gay man, I know the look. He was shouting and yelling.

    “We had stopped because I wanted to get my keys out of my boyfriends pocket.

    “Before I knew it he’s telling us we need to f*** off and this bottle came smashing at my boyfriend’s feet.

    The man is described as in his 30s and strangely was wearing a hat covered in fairy lights.

    Harries took to Twitter to speak about his ordeal saying, “Last night, my boyfriend and I were walking back to my car (linking arms) from a gig when a guy threw a glass bottle at us and told us – in not so many nice words – that we need to go elsewhere. Homophobia at its best. This is why we still need pride”.

    https://twitter.com/bleddynharris/status/1168060870099951617

    Speaking to THEGAYUK.com Bleddyn was keen to stress that this type of occurrence was all too common, saying that there was an “undercurrent of phobia towards non-binary, trans individuals and people who are bi”.

    He said despite the incident he was not going to hide who he is, saying “I will continue to be as fabulous…it will embolden me”, but was worried that it might leave his boyfriend “second-guessing” whether to hold his hand in public in future.

    Do LGBT+ people fear holding their partner’s hands in public?

    In 2019 we asked readers of THEGAYUK.com whether they’d be comfortable in holding their partner’s hand in public. 85 per cent of people said that they would feel uncomfortable holding their partner’s hand in public.  Only 15 per cent of those who answered said they would feel comfortable.

    Percentage of LGBT+ couples who feel comfortable holding hands in public

    2016 50%

    2018 41%

    2019 15%

    Worryingly the LGBT+ community is getting warier of showing public displays of affection on the streets of the UK. In 2018 when we conducted the same survey, only 41% said they wouldn’t feel they could hold hands with their partner and in 2016 that figure was 23%.

  • Homophobe landed £140 fine for painting anti-gay slurs on garage

    Homophobe landed £140 fine for painting anti-gay slurs on garage

    A 55-year-old man has been ordered to pay £140 in damages after spraying a homophobic slur on a garage door.

    • Was ordered to pay £140 in damages.

    • Parsons denied the allegations

    • Parsons was identified on CCTV

    A vandal who used spray paint to daub a garage door with homophobic slurs has been ordered by a court to pay £140.

    Michael Parsons, 55, was hit with the fine after he appeared at court in South Tyneside last week to admit the criminal damage.

    On January 16 this year police received a report that homophobic slurs had been spray-painted on a garage door on Lane Head in Ryton.

    Officers identified Parsons from CCTV footage in the back lane in which the pensioner could be clearly seen committing the offence.

    He was arrested but claimed he had just had foot surgery and required the use of crutches so could not have been responsible.

    But the vandal was left red-faced when police showed him CCTV of him leaving a nearby supermarket without his crutches.

    The 55-year-old had entered the store with them on his arms but accidentally left them in the shop before leaving unaided.

    After being confronted with the footage, Parsons, of Greenfields, Ryton, pleaded guilty to one count of criminal damage.

    He was handed a conditional discharge at South Tyneside Magistrates’ Court on August 29 but was made to pay £140 because of the homophobic nature of the graffiti.

    Following the case, investigating officer PC Ferenc Szilvasi slammed Parsons behaviour and said he had shown no remorse when questioned by police.

    He said: “This mindless vandalism left the victim with significant damage to her door but it was the nature of the graffiti that was so upsetting.

    “She was very distressed to be targeted by this vandal and I am glad that we have been able to get her a result at court.

    “This type of behaviour is completely unacceptable and I want people to know that we will take action against offenders.

    “He is a prolific criminal who showed absolutely no remorse and tried to claim that the person in the footage could not be him.

    “The only reason he admitted the offence was because of the overwhelming evidence against him and I am glad we have secured a conviction.

    “Magistrates ordered Parsons to pay the money he did because this was recorded as a hate crime and I hope that reassures victims.

    “Being you is not a crime and nobody should be targeted for who they are. If you have been a victim of hate crime then please get in touch.”

    What is a Hate Crime?

    A crime is considered to be a hate crime if someone has been targeted because of who they are their race, faith, religion, disability, gender identity, age and sexual orientation.

    Anyone can report a hate crime – victims, families and friends, carers or someone unrelated to a victim who has been a witness.

    You can do this by calling police on 101 or by filling in an online reporting form at the Northumbria Police website.

     

  • Police are looking to speak to these men after a man was raped in Manchester’s city centre

    Police are looking to speak to these men after a man was raped in Manchester’s city centre

    Police have opened an investigation after a report of a man being raped in Manchester’s City centre. Police have released three CCTV images of people they’d like to speak to.

    At around 1.30am on Wednesday 3 April 2019, police were called to a report that a 28-year-old man had been raped.

    The man had met with two men in the Canal Street area before walking towards Back Piccadilly, where he was then raped and robbed.

    After the attack, it is believed the offenders met up with a further man before all three travelled via Birmingham and London Victoria on the National Express Coach, arriving in London around 6 am.

    Since the rape occurred, officers have been examining CCTV footage to establish the circumstances surrounding the offence.

    CCTV images released by investigating officers show three men they want to speak to in connection with the investigation.

    Detective Constable Louise Kelly of GMP’s City of Manchester division, said, “Since the attack, we’ve been following numerous lines of enquiry, but unfortunately we have yet to find the men responsible.

    “We have now released images of three men we want to speak to.

    “Anyone who recognises these men should get in touch with us as soon as possible.

    “We urge people to pass on any information, no matter how small, so that we can progress this investigation further.”

    Anyone with any information should contact police on 0161 856 4409 quoting reference 133 03/04/19 or the independent charity Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.

  • Arrest made after homophobic abuse shouted at Pride event

    Arrest made after homophobic abuse shouted at Pride event

    A woman in her late 30s has been arrested following a homophobic incident at a Pride event over the weekend.

    A 38-year-old woman has been arrested in connection to homophobic abuse levelled at pride attendees last weekend. Footage emerged of a woman dressed in a niqab shouting “shame” and “despicable” at pride goers in Waltham Forest.

    In the video, which has been seen over 3.6 millions times taken, she could be heard shouting, “God created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve.

    “Shame on you, shame on all of you.

    “Shame on you, you despicable people. Shame on you, you shameless people.

    Arrested under section 4a of the Public Order Act

    The Metropolitan Police’s Waltham Forest Twitter account said on Monday: “Officers investigating footage circulating on social media of abuse directed at those taking part in a Pride event in Waltham Forest have arrested a 38-year-old woman under section 4a of the Public Order Act.

    She has been taken into custody at a north London police station.”

     

  • Woman in Niqab seen shouting “SHAME” at LGBT+ people at Pride event

    Woman in Niqab seen shouting “SHAME” at LGBT+ people at Pride event

    A woman dressed in a full-face veil seen shouting “shame” and other homophobic slurs at participants of a pride event in London.

    Police are investigating after footage emerged purportedly showing a woman in a niqab shouting homophobic abuse at a pride parade in Waltham Forest, London over the weekend.

    The woman in the traditional strict Islamic niqab can be heard screaming “shame on you” and “God created Adam and Eve, not Adam and Steve”, before yelling “shame” repeatedly and calling the attendees “despicable”.

    The attendee was being protected by a pride volunteer.

    The identity of the alleged abuser is obscured by the full-face veil. Police are investigating the incident. The footage has now been watched over 3.6 million times.

    A police spokesperson told The Independent: “We are aware of footage circulating on social media of abuse directed at those taking part in the Waltham Forest Pride event and enquiries are taking place.

    “Abusing someone because of their sexual orientation or gender identity is a hate crime and we would encourage victims and those who were there when this took place to come forward.

    “If you have been verbally or physically abused, harassed or attacked in any way by someone because you are or they think you are LGBT+ please report these crimes to the police.”

    The footage was captured by Twitter used, Yusuf Patel

    Police have responded by tweeting that they are aware of the footage and ‘enquiries are underway”.

     

  • ‘Homophobic machete attack’ on the streets of London

    Police have reported that they responded to a suspected homophobic attack by a knifeman brandishing a machete.

    A victim has been left with a leg wound after an alleged attack on the streets of London. Police responded to an incident in south-east London this afternoon, where it was reported that a man was attacked on Surrey Quays Road in Southwark, with a machete.

    The Metropolitan police say they believe that the attack was motivated by homophobia. The victim was transported to hospital in an ambulance and is being treated for his injuries.

    A spokeswoman for the Met added: ‘Police are dealing with a suspected homophobic attack in Southwark.

    “Officers were called at 3.12pm on Tuesday, July 23, to Surrey Quays Road.

    “It was reported a man had been attacked with a machete.

    “Officers attended and found a man with a wound to his leg.

    “He was taken by London Ambulance Service to a south London hospital.

    “The suspect is believed to have left the scene on a motorbike.

    “At this time police believe there may be a homophobic motive for the attack.”