Maryland College Students Charged In Anti-Gay Hate Crime

Twelve students from Salisbury University in Maryland, including seven associated with the fraternity Sigma Alpha Epsilon, have been charged with a hate crime for orchestrating an alleged attack on a man because of his sexual orientation, according to the police. The authorities say the students, ranging in age from 18-21, face assault, false imprisonment, reckless endangerment, and associated hate crime charges after luring the man to an off-campus apartment on October 15 through a fake Grindr account pretending to be a 16-year-old.

Twelve Salisbury University (SU) students connected to a fraternity are accused of using a dating app to lure, threaten, and assault another man in mid-October, according to Salisbury police.https://t.co/AHqwBHqy73

— 7News DC (@7NewsDC) November 8, 2024

I’m not an advocate for adults having sex with teens, but it’s worth noting the legal age of consent in Maryland is sixteen. Anyone 16 or older has the legal right to make their own decisions about sexual activity. In any case, no sex activity took place. According to the charging documents, once the man arrived at the apartment, about 15 college-aged males appeared from the back bedroom and began slapping, punching, kicking and spitting on the victim. More from the local CBS News affiliate reports this from the charging documents:

One suspect in a Salisbury University hoodie “[struck the victim] in the head multiple times with a cooking sheet in addition to spitting on [the victim] and calling him [a slur] during the incident,” according to the charging documents.

Police said the victim repeatedly tried to flee the apartment but was thrown to the floor. He was eventually able to escape.

The victim did not report the attack and told police he was threatened and “was in fear for his life during the entirety of the incident and does believe he was targeted for being a homosexual.”

The victim suffered a broken rib and was treated at the hospital.

Someone recorded the attack and court documents revealed police tracked the victim down through MVA records because his license plate was visible in the video when he fled the scene.

The twelve arrested were identified as: • 20-year-old Ryder Baker of Olney, Md. • 18-year-old Benman Aird of Milton, Del. • 20-year-old Riley Brister of Davidsonville, Md. • 19-year-old Cruz Cespedes of Jarrettsville, Md. • 20-year-old Dylan Earp of Gambrills, Md. • 19-year-old Elijah Johnson of Crofton, Md. • 18-year-old Zachary Leinemann of Crofton, Md. • 18-year-old Cameron Guy Baltimore, Md. • 19-year-old Jacob Howard of Elkridge, Md. • 21-year-old Eric Sinclair of Mount Airy, Md. • 19-year-old Patrick Gutierrez of Salisbury, Md. • 20-year-old Dylan Pietuszka of Friendship, Md. Salisbury University says all of the students have been suspended. The university also noted that the victim is not a student at the school. A lawyer for one of the students says his client will plead not guilty. Over the years, I’ve reported here about dozens of cases where Grindr was used to entrap and assault gay men. Folks, the haters know about Grindr, and they know many victims won’t even report crimes against them because they are closeted or believe the police won’t do anything about them. I highly suggest being careful when meeting folks on dating apps. More from the local NBC News affiliate: (h/t JoeMyGod)