UK Man Threatened with Cattle Prod, Robbed in Grindr Date

A gay London man says a date he met on the hookup Grindr robbed him after the date's accomplice threatened him with a cattle prod last month, the Daily Mail reports.

Officials from Scotland Yard said that the 26-year-old victim had been messaging the suspect via Grindr and invited him to his home in Bayswater, West London, on Sept. 28.

When the date came to the man's house, around 5 p.m., he spent most of his time texting on his phone until he said he was leaving. The victim then walked him out, but the date's accomplice was waiting outside with a cattle prod. When the victim opened the front door, the duo jumped him and pushed him back into his home.

They threatened the young man, who remains anonymous, with the cattle prod, and stole cash and a laptop before leaving the home.

The victim did not suffer any serious injures but was "very shaken" by the alleged incident

The authorities have released surveillance footage of the two suspects in connection with the alleged attack, warning that they could have targeted other gay men.

"The victim thankfully did not suffer serious physical injuries but has been left very shaken by this incident," Detective Constable April Smart, of Westminster CID, told the Daily Mail. "I am keen to identify the two suspects as soon as possible and I am appealing to anyone who may know who they are to contact the police."

Smart added: "Whilst we have not connected this incident to any other reported to us, I must consider that the suspects could have committed this type of offense previously and I would appeal to anyone who may have been a victim of this type of offense to contact the police, where they will be treated with the utmost sensitivity.

"I would like to take this opportunity to reassure the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender) community that we are doing everything we can to arrest these men and have followed and eliminated a number of potential leads and inquiries to date," she continued. "I would urge everyone who uses the services of online dating apps and sites to take steps to help them to stay safe whilst meeting strangers."

The date is described as blond and in his 20s. His accomplice is described as white, in his late 20s, of medium build and bald.

A similar incident occurred in the U.K. earlier year. In September it was reported that two men who were found guilty of blackmailing gay men on Grindr were sentenced to four years in jail.

The duo, Nathanael Foster and Adam Webb, both 26, posed as 15-year-old boys, a year under the age of consent, and filmed them meeting men they met on the popular hookup app in order to extort money from them.