Two men were sentenced to more than six years in prison this week over a spree of robberies where they used dating app Grindr to target gay men.
Andrew James Tanswell, 41, was this week sentenced to prison for six years and eight months, with a non-parole period of five years, while co-accused George Phoenix Leilua, 37, received six years and two months, with a non-parole period of four years.
The pair were convicted over five robberies of men in 2023. The convictions come as similar crimes are being prosecuted across multiple Australian states. Similar crimes have recently been before the courts in Western Australia, the ACT and Victoria.
In court judge Andrew Colefax laid out how the two men had tricked and robbed their victims. Their crimes saw Tanswell arrange to meet men in their homes, then while they were distracted he would let Leilua into their residences.
The men would then have their valuable stolen, and be forced to disclose access to their banking apps on their mobile phones. For one of their victims this saw $15,000 being removed from his accounts.
Both Tanswell and Leilua pleaded guilty to the multiple charges. A spokesperson for Grindr has said that the company works closely with local law enforcement and LGBTIQA+ organisations to increase safety awareness among users of the app.
