The defendants, Demalji Hadza, Abubaker Alezawy, Ali Hassan, Wasim Omar and Mohammed Sharif undertook the campaign of robberies across Derby and Birmingham between April 2023 and February 2024.
The majority of the victims had been targeted on the gay dating app ‘Grindr’ and encouraged to meet with what they believed was a genuine user of the app. When they arrived, they were attacked by the men who would hold them at the location while using their victim’s mobile telephone banking apps to drain their bank accounts.
Other victims were targeted in or outside of nightclubs and lured to the site of the attack by one of the defendant’s pretending to be injured or with offers of a lift home.
The defendants obtained nearly £100,000.00 in stolen money and cryptocurrency from their victims’ online accounts as well as physical belongings including a watch, a van and wallets.
The sentence of all defendants will take place in November 2024.
£100k Grindr gang who trapped victims facing jail over criminal reign of terror – BirminghamLive
