Gang that used Grindr to lure victims then rob them is jailed

Five men who stole more than £100,000 by using dating apps such as Grindr to lure their victims to a location before attacking and robbing them have been jailed.

The gang planned, conspired and committed robberies across Golden Hillock Park in south Birmingham and in Derby city centre across 10 months between between 2023 and 2024.

Demalji Hadza, Abubaker Alezawy, Ali Hassan, Wasim Omar and Mohammed Sharif, all in their early 20s, have been handed sentences of between 12 and 17 years at Birmingham Crown Court.

The group used dating apps such as Grindr, which caters for the LGBTQ+ community, to convince users they would be meeting up with a legitimate person.

They would then hold on to their victims for hours while using their phones to transfer large sums of money out of their bank accounts.

The group would also attack their victims and steal their belongings including house keys, wallets and identification documents.

Vehicles were also stolen and the group’s victims were often threatened with weapons before being left stranded.

Police said those who were targeted were left with injuries including broken eye sockets, a dislocated shoulder and a broken nose.

Many of them required treatment in hospital.

The group would also pretend to be injured to trick members of the public into helping them.

In one incident the men pretended their car had broken down in Derby before assaulting and robbing two members of the public who tried to assist them.

In most of the attacks, the suspects concealed their identities with masks or face-coverings or held their victims down with their faces in the mud to prevent them from being able to identify them.

Footage showed the men attending cashpoints where they would also withdraw sums of money, according to police.

They would also go to shops to spend money using the stolen cards and were seen celebrating outside afterwards.

Omar, 24, has been sentenced to 17 years and three months.

Hassan, 20, has been jailed for 16 years and nine months, while Alezawy, 21, has been sentenced to 16 years and five months.

Hadza, 21, has been sentenced to 16 years and two months, while Sharif, 22, has been jailed for 12 years and three months.

Hadza and Alezawy had pleaded guilty on day two of the trial, according to police, while Hassan, Omar and Sharif were found guilty on 17 September last year, following a six-week trial.

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Detective Inspector Tom Lyons, from the Birmingham Local Policing Area, said: “This was a calculated series of robberies with Hadza, Alezawy, Hasan, Omar and Sharif, deliberately targeting victims because they believed they were vulnerable, easy targets.

“My team conducted a lengthy investigation which required piecing together many strands of evidence.

“I know that it took the victims in this case a huge amount of bravery and courage to come forward and support the criminal justice process through to trial – and I commend them for doing so.

“Their evidence enabled us to launch a full-scale investigation and build a strong case, which ultimately brought the offenders to justice, and has undoubtedly prevented many other people from becoming a victim.

“I hope today’s sentencing provides reassurance that we take these types of offences extremely seriously, and always do everything in our power to bring offenders to justice. Those found committing offences like this can expect to face a considerable length of time in prison.”