Grindr user kidnappings spark concern in South Africa
The number of kidnappings linked to popular gay hookup site Grindr are surging in South Africa. Queer sex workers are the ones who are particularly vulnerable to these kidnappings.
They are often robbed and attacked by people who pose as potential clients, but do not report the crimes because they are afraid law enforcement will ridicule them.
Queer sex workers who are targeted on Grindr do not report their cases for the same reason. One such victim is Jake. He told Exit, an LGBTQ and intersex newspaper, that he was held hostage for six hours and was only released after his kidnappers extorted $600 from him and his family.
According to Jake, which is not his real name, a man on Grindr who posed as a potential client refused to send his picture because he said he had a wife and children.
