Grindr pair who raped men '˜for fun' jailed in Edinburgh

A MAN and a teenager who raped two men they met through the gay dating app Grindr for 'just a bit of fun' have been sentenced.
The High Court in EdinburghThe High Court in Edinburgh
The High Court in Edinburgh

Mohammed Khan,28, and the 17-year-old Slovakian national, who can’t be named for legal reasons, were jailed for a total of 15 years.

The pair sexually assaulted their victims in September 2017.

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The high court heard how the two men called themselves “Two discreet lads” on the app.

The court heard how after they attacked the first man on September 3 at a location in the south side of Glasgow.

The two men attacked their second victim at location in Glasgow just a week later.

However, the two rapists were caught after their victims spoke to police officers who managed to collect enough evidence to bring them to justice.

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On Thursday, at the High Court in Edinburgh, judge Lord Uist sentenced Khan, a prisoner of HMP Barlinnie, to seven years. He also ordered the authorities to supervise Khan for two years following his release from custody.

The judge also sentenced the Slovakian national to eight years detention. He was also told that he’d be supervised by the authorities for two years following his release from custody.

The judge had passed the sentence after a social worker who was commissioned to write a report into the men’s character recorded that Khan made remarks about the offences during his interview.

The court heard that Khan told the social worker that the crimes were “just a bit of fun”.

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Passing sentence, Lord Uist said: “The victim in each of these charges was a homosexual man who was targeted for that and no doubt in the hope that he would report any crime against him to the police.

“You Mohammed Khan are now almost 29-years-old. You described these crimes to the social worker who reported on you to this court as ‘Just a bit of fun’.

“You were mature enough at the time to know exactly what you were doing.”

The two men were convicted following trial at the High Court in Livingston last month. Sentence had been deferred so the court could obtain reports about their character.

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The two men were convicted at trial alongside Afzaal Hassan,20, of West Calder, West Lothian, and Julius Horvath, 20, of Govanhill, Glasgow.

They were found guilty of attacking and trying to rob another man, who also cannot be named for legal reasons.

The quartet had denied the charges.

The court heard car mechanic Khan and the teenage Slovakian made contact with their 30-year-old victim, who came from Pollok, Glasgow,.

They turned up at his home after chatting with him on Grindr.

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The court heard there was a consensual sex act between the man and the teenager before Khan grabbed him by the arm and pushed him against a wall.

The teenager then pulled down his trousers and raped him.

The court heard how their second victim was aged just 20 and was living in a university’s halls of residence when the two men sexually assaulted him.

The student told the court that he had been threatened with violence before Khan forced him to perform a sex act on him on September 7.

The Slovakian teenager along with Hassan and Horvath had previously attacked and attempted to rob a man after luring him to an industrial estate.

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The 40-year-old man told the court that Hassan invited him to go with him for “sexual fun” in the early hours of August 7 2017.

He picked Hassan and the teenager up on Cathcart Road, Glasgow and drove to Tradeston Industrial Estate.

The court heard the men were having a cigarette when Horvath arrived in a car with “Khan’s Autos” livery and walked up to him.

Horvath then threw a punch at the man who then tried to escape.

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The court heard he was chased by the trio who had armed themselves with poles and lengths of wood.

The victim was eventually caught before being attacked.

On Thursday, the Slovakian teenager’s defence solicitor advocate Liam Ewing said his client had a chaotic lifestyle.

Mr Ewing added: “He has had a fairly unsettled life. He has travelled back and forth between Scotland and Slovakia. There’s been a substantial period of time when he hasn’t attended school and has been without parental support.

“According to a psychological report which has been placed before the court, his intellectual function is assessed at being an extremely low level.

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“I would ask your lordship to bear this mind when considering which sentence to impose.”

But Lord Uist told the four men that jail was the only option available to him.

Hassan and Horvath were given six years each for their crimes. They will also be supervised by the authorities for two years.

Both Khan and the Slovakian were also placed on the Sex Offenders Register indefinitely.

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