Two Men Jailed For Using Grindr In Robberies Across Sydney

Two Sydney men have been sentenced to more than six years for the robberies of five men they arranged to meet through gay dating app, Grindr.

Andrew James Tanswell, 41, was sentenced to prison for six years and eight months, with a non-parole period of five years, and George Phoenix Leilua, 37, was sentenced to six years and two months with a non-parole period of four years.

As per The Guardian, New South Wales district court judge Andrew Colefax found the two men had set up Grindr accounts and arranged to meet men under false pretences.

Tanswell and Leilua threatened their victims, forcing them to hand over their phone and bank logins, before stealing money from their accounts.

The incidents took place between May and June 2023, with the pair stealing more than $22,000 from five victims across Western Sydney. On one occasion, the men also stole a victim’s mobile phone, $160 in cash, various identity documents and his Medicare card.

Leilua was arrested on 15 June 2023, with Tanswell apprehend the following day. Both men pleaded guilty.

Robberies not isolated incidents

Similar attacks have taken place across Canberra, Victoria, and Western Australia in recent years, with Victorian police arresting 35 people, mostly teenage boys, over the past eight months.

Police allege that the perpetrators used fake profiles on dating apps to lure men to locations where they were then assaulted, robbed, and subjected to homophobic abuse. In some cases, the attacks were filmed and shared online.

At the time, the state’s LGBTQIA+ Commissioner Joe Ball labelled the attacks “deliberate, organised, and hateful.”

“To our communities: I see you, and I know how distressing this is. Many of us remember the days when violence against gay men was normalised, overlooked – even expected. We will not go back.”

A spokesperson for Grindr told The Guardian bad actors may attempt to misuse the services and put users at risk, similar to any service, but that the company worked hard to ensure “a safe and authentic environment free of harmful and fake accounts”.

Grindr has shown in-app alerts warning users about recent attacks, with the spokesperson adding that the app partners with government agencies, local law enforcement, and LGBTQ+ organisations to provide such alerts in periods of increased threats to users.