A Dallas man has been sentenced to more than twenty-three years in federal prison for hate crimes. On October 13, 22-year-old Daniel Jenkins was found guilty of committing violent crimes against gay users of the dating app Grindr.
According to court documents, Jenkins admitted to conspiring to target nine men from the Dallas area for violent crimes, including carjacking, kidnapping, and hate crimes because of his perception of the men being gay. Jenkins and other conspirators used Grindr, a social media platform widely used by gay men, to lure victims to an apartment complex in Dallas beginning on or around December 6, 2017.
Court documents say that when the men arrived, they would be held at gunpoint by the conspirators and forced to drive to local ATMs to withdraw cash from their accounts.
“This defendant singled out victims based on their perceived sexual orientation, then viciously assaulted them,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Chad Meacham for the Northern District of Texas.
Chad condemns the actions of Jenkins and his co-conspirators, while he advises users of dating apps like Grindr to be careful and vigilant. Assistant Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division assured residents that the Civil Rights Division will continue to get justice for victims of bias-motivated crimes.
Jenkins got a sentence of twenty-three years and four months in federal prison for his involvement in the scheme.
Wednesday’s sentencing made Jenkins the last of four defendants to be sentenced in this case. The three other suspects received their sentencing before Jenkins.
On June 2, Jenkins made a guilty plea and admitted to participating in the crimes. He also admitted that he worked with his co-conspirators to lure multiple gay men to the apartment complex on December 11, 2017, and threatened the victims with a gun while taking their personal properties and assaulting them. He said that at least one victim was physically injured in that incident.
Jenkins pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit kidnapping, carjacking, and hate crimes. He also pleaded guilty to one hate crime count and one count of the use of a firearm during a violent crime.
With the plea agreement, Jenkins faced a maximum of twenty-six years in prison.